The Dragonborn & The Companion
by SaxyGirl
Summary: A series of interactions between the Dragonborn and Vilkas. Rated T to be safe.
1. Chapter 1

_I own nothing except the Dragonborn character in this story. All rest belongs to the Mighty Bethesda._

The soft sound of leather armor met his ears where he sat at the small table across from the elder Companion. From the side of his eyes he could see somebody approaching down the hall, but elected to ignore the newcomer and continue his conversation with his Harbinger. "But I still hear the call of the blood," he commented. The scent of the outdoors filled his nostrils, reminding him of the forests around Falkreath as the person drew closer.

"We all do. It is our burden to bear. But we can overcome," Kodlak responded.

"You have my brother and I, obviously. But I do not know if the rest will go along quite so easily," he retorted. He knew that Aela and Skjor continued to answer the call of the blood as often as they could. Convincing them to turn away would be a difficult task.

"Leave that to me," Kodlak returned, seemingly unconcerned about how difficult the task may be. He turned his attention away, signaling that the matter was closed.

Vilkas took the opportunity to examine the woman who had walked in. She was an elf, a Bosmer, with dark hair that she had cut short. The tips of her ears peaked out between the strands of hair and she wore a circlet that was made of an oddly colored blue metal. Her eyes were dark, nearly black in color and there were three jagged scars that ran down one side of her face, from cheekbone to chin.

He was amazed to see her armor looked to be made of dragon scales and was fitted to her like a second skin. She had a bow on her back which appeared to be made of bone, possibly dragon, and two daggers on her waist. He noticed that one had a Daedric character engraved on it and momentarily wished that he had a better knowledge of Daedric artifacts. He inhaled slowly and deeply, again detecting the scent of the forest but underneath it was another smell, something raw and fiery, something dangerous.

She nodded in greeting to Kodlak before speaking. "I would like to gain entry to the Companions," her voice was soft yet strong and though she spoke lightly, it filled the room.

Kodlak's eyebrows rose. "Would you now? Here, let me have a look at you. Hm. Yes, perhaps, a certain strength of spirit."

Vilkas' eyes darted over to Kodlak. "Master, you are not truly considering accepting her?" he sputtered.

Kodlak sighed slightly and replied, "I am nobody's master, Vilkas. And last I checked, we had some empty beds in Jorrvaskr for those with a fire burning in their hearts."

Vilkas snorted and answered, "Apologies. But perhaps this is not the time. I have never even heard of this outsider."

At his words her eyebrows shot up and a small smile played at the corners of her mouth. Kodlak didn't seem to notice and continued, "Sometimes the famous come to us. Sometimes men and women come to us to seek their fame. It makes no difference. What matters is their heart."

Vilkas smirked. "And their arm," he added.

Kodlak nodded and turned back to her. "Of course," he said and looked her over again, "How are you in battle, girl?"

The small smile grew a bit and she shrugged one shoulder before responding, "I can handle myself."

Kodlak frowned, "That may be so. This is Vilkas. He will test your arm. Vilkas, take her out to the yard and see what she can do."

She looked at him expectantly and he rose, leading her down the hall, upstairs and out to the yard. They got a few odd looks as they walked through Jorrvaskr and he noticed that Farkas and Aela both followed them out to the yard to watch.

He turned and unsheathed his sword, adjusting his shield at the same time. "The old man said to have a look at you, so let's do this. Just have a few swings at me so I can see your form. Do not worry, I can take it."

She unsheathed her two daggers, twirling them around in her hands before dropping into a fighting stance. She shifted around him, making no move to attack as she slowly circled. He echoed her movements, making sure to keep the shield between them. After one full circle she attacked. He barely pulled the shield up in time to block her first dagger, but not the second as it slipped passed his neck, nicking the skin slightly. She danced back a smirk playing on her lips.

He could hear the chuckles from the porch where the audience watched and shrugged them off, sheathing his sword and dropping his shield. "You might just make it," he said as she adjusted the daggers on her hips. "But for now, you are still a whelp to us, new blood. So you do what we tell you," he added, grinning when she looked up at him sharply. "Here is my sword. Go take it up to Eorlund to have it sharpened. And be careful, it is probably worth more than you are."

For a reason unknown to him she laughed, the tinkling sound lingering and mixing with the sounds of Eorlund's hammer. "I would be glad to," she added reaching out and gripping the large two-handed sword, easily throwing it over her shoulder and giving him a nod before she headed towards the Skyforge.

"Whelp," Vilkas called after her. She stopped and turned her head in his direction, eyebrow raised. "Do you have a name?" he asked.

She paused before answering, "I have many names. For now, 'Whelp' will suffice." With that she spun and took off at a light jog, disappearing around the corner before he could comment.


	2. Chapter 2

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

She was exhausted by the time they made it back to Whiterun. She had not realized until starting out to Dustman's Cairn with Farkas just how spoiled she had become with her horses. On top of the trek to and back from the Cairn, what should have been a simple infiltration and recovery had turned into a fight for their lives. A frown tugged at her lips when she recalled Farkas shifting into his werewolf form and a long forgotten overheard conversation tugged at her memory. She adjusted her pack and trailed behind Farkas up the stairs towards the Wind District as she thought. They were just reaching the steps of Jorrvaskr when she remembered the conversation she had overheard between Vilkas and Kodlak when she first came to join the Companions nearly three months earlier. It had been something about the calling of blood. Surely the ability to shift had been what the two were discussing.

"Ah, you are back. We have been awaiting your return." She looked up, startled to see Vilkas waiting on the steps so late at night. From what she had observed in her time spent so far with the Companions, by this time of night he was long gone, off to the Bannered Mare to flirt with Carlotta or Hulda and drink what seemed to be his own weight in mead.

She slipped her pack off her shoulder and let it drop at her feet. "Why were you waiting for me?" she inquired.

"Come follow me," he said and turned, heading towards the back of Jorrvaskr. She looked over at Farkas, eyebrow raised in question.

He grinned at her and picked up her pack, easily shouldering it. "Let's go," he urged, herding her in the direction his twin had disappeared.

"They are not going to sacrifice me or something are they," she murmured to the larger man, smiling as his grin dropped to a confused frown.

"Why would we do something like that?" he asked, genuinely concerned. "If you were not fit to be a Companion, you would just be turned out, not sacrificed." He flinched at the thought.

She laughed, "I was joking Farkas. Too much time spent with the occasional Daedra worshipper I guess." She motioned and half-bowed. "Lead on Shield-Brother," she instructed.

He smiled uncertainly at her and led the way to the back of the building where the rest of the Circle had gathered. Kodlak motioned for her to stand before them and Farkas carefully placed his pack and hers down next to the steps before taking his place next to Vilkas.

Kodlak leveled his gaze to her. "State your name and intention," he ordered.

She cleared her throat and stood up straighter, "I am Elise and I wish to join the Companions."

"Brothers and sisters of the Circle, today a new soul asks to join our mortal fold. This woman has endured, challenged and shown us her valor. Who will speak for her?" Kodlak stated.

Farkas cleared his throat and responded, "I stand witness to the courage of the soul before us."

"Would you raise your shield in her defense?" Kodlak returned.

"I would stand at her back, that the world might never overtake us." Farkas replied.

"And would you raise your sword in her honor?" Kodlak inquired.

"It stands ready to meet the blood of her foes," Farkas vowed.

"And would you raise a mug in her name?" Kodlak added.

"I would lead the song of triumph as our mead hall reveled in her stories!" Farkas declared.

"Then the judgment of this Circle is complete. Her heart beats with the fury and courage that have united the Companions since the days of the distant green summers. Let it beat with ours, that the mountains may echo and our enemies may tremble at the call." Kodlak finished.

"It shall be so," the rest of the Circle echoed.

Farkas walked over to her, clapping her on the back. "Welcome to the Companions, Sister. You have earned it."

"Thank you, Farkas," Elise responded. The pair walked over to where he had laid their packs earlier. She hefted hers up and secured it over her shoulder. "I cannot wait to just fall into a bed and sleep."

"And miss your own induction celebration?" Aela asked, coming up next to them. "Where is the fun in that? And we need somebody to tell us what happened at the Cairn. Icebrain is not the best story teller."

Elise glanced over at Farkas and he shrugged good-naturedly. "It is true, I am not. You are not going to skip the celebration are you?" He looked at her pleadingly and she laughed.

"I will come for you Farkas, because without you I would not have made it out of that Cairn alive. I would like to clean up and change into something a bit more comfortable first, alright?" Elise tilted her head in question.

"Sure, I need to head down to the Mare to pick up some ale anyway. You can use my room. Give you a little privacy," Farkas said.

"Thank you, Farkas." Elise turned and headed down the stairs, rolling her shoulders to work out the kinks as she walked through the empty hall. She located Farkas' room and edged open the door, dropping her pack on the floor just inside and pushing it shut. She stripped off her armor, laying it in a careful pile before locating a small basin of water. She dug around in her pack and pulled out a linen cloth, dipping it in the cool water and running it over her face to wipe away the dust and blood that had dried there.

Once she was cleaned up she returned to her pack and found a plain tunic and breeches, along with her favorite pair of boots. She pulled them out and laid them on the bed and then tugged her breast band off, tossing it in a messy pile on the floor next to her armor. She reached for the tunic, nearly dropping it in surprise when the door slammed open. "Farkas, do you have my –" Vilkas stopped midsentence and gaped at Elise. She squeaked and started to turn away from him, stopping about halfway and turning back to face him, the tunic clutched to her chest.

Vilkas looked her over and sneered, "Just what are you doing in here? Planning on lying in wait until Farkas comes down and then try and sleep your way into a higher rank?"

Elise pulled back in shock at the fury and disgust that laced his voice. The fire of anger slowly built through her veins and she stood straighter, careful to keep her tunic against her chest. "How dare you," she snarled, "I know you do not like me Vilkas, but to think that I would ever stoop so low."

His eyes narrowed and he took a step forward. She forced herself to stand her ground. "I have done my research on you," his voice rumbled low, filled with disdain, "The Mage's College, The Thieves' Guild, _The Dark Brotherhood_? Oh yes, I know about all of them."

"You know nothing," she murmured and turned away.

"By the Nines," Vilkas breathed and she cringed. "Do you have any sense? You never should have gone with Farkas with wounds like that." She knew he was looking at the three parallel gashes that ran down her back from her left shoulder to her right hip. They were barely scabbed over and constantly looked as if the wrong movement would tear them open and send a cascade of blood down her back. "You could have gotten him killed if you were unable to fight."

"They are fine," she sighed.

He snarled and she jumped in surprise. "I may not like you, but if you are fighting with one of us you must be in top form." He strode over to Farkas' shelf of potions and began rummaging through them. "He has to keep some healing potions in here," he groused.

Her hand closed around his wrist and he looked at her. "They will not help," she whispered. "The wounds, they are over four months old. I have tried everything, healing potions, spells, nobody at the College of Winterhold has been able to help."

She turned away from him and moved back to the bed where the rest of her clothes lay. His hand fell heavy on her shoulder and he tugged her tunic up, holding it with the hand on her shoulder while the other skimmed lightly over the wounds. She bit her lip and suppressed the shiver that tried to run through her at his light touch. "What kind of creature caused such wounds?" he asked.

She stepped out of his grip and tugged on her breeches, lacing everything up as she turned to face him. "Alduin, the World-Eater," she stated.

His face went from concerned to incredulous and he rolled his eyes. "You expect me to believe that?"

She gritted her teeth and sat on the bed, tugging on her knee-high leather boots and beginning to work at those laces as well. "I expect nothing from you, Vilkas."

"Elise, are you still down here?" Farkas pushed the door open and frowned. "What are you two doing?"

"Just having a little chat, though I think Vilkas originally came in here looking for something." Elise finished with her boots and stood from the bed. "Can I leave my armor in here Farkas? I will collect it tomorrow."

"Of course you can, Sister! Anything that is mine is yours," he added, throwing an arm around her shoulder and tugging her into the hall. "Now, if you want there to be any mead left, we better get upstairs."

"That sounds grand. I could use it after today," Elise responded. She could see Vilkas glaring at her from the side of her eye and chose to ignore him, instead turning her attention to Farkas and his amusing commentary on how different she looked out of her armor.


	3. Chapter 3

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

The door slammed open, startling Vilkas from his thoughts. He raised his eyes as laughter met his ears. "I honestly think the best part was when he propositioned both of us _at the same time_," Elise exclaimed to her blonde companion.

"I know," the Nordic woman chuckled. "And he called it our 'great reward for a job well done'. I would sooner sleep with a skeever!" she declared.

"Skjor!" Elise called happily, waving at him across the room. "I have finished the rescue mission."

"So I heard," he commented. "And if the message I received is correct you also threatened to return him back to the bandits."

The Nord blonde shrugged. "He should not have entered our tent in nothing but his small clothes. He is lucky all we did was _threaten_ to take him back."

"Jordis has a good point, Skjor," Elise added. "Attempting to accost your rescuers in their sleep is not good form."

The older man started to frown at her, but ended up just shaking his head, an amused grin twitching at his lips.

"Elise!" Farkas bounded up the stairs and swept her up in a hug. Vilkas gritted his teeth at the display. He suspected that Farkas had a crush on the newest member. He would have to mention to his brother some of her more unsavory characteristics.

"Farkas," Elise giggled, "Put me down. I have not been away that long."

"Nearly a month is that long," he responded, but dropped her down. His eyes alighted on the woman who had entered with Elise and he raised an eyebrow. "Who is this, a prospect for joining the Companions?"

Elise stepped back and motioned. "This is Jordis, she is my housecarl." The Nordic woman shook Farkas' hand.

Farkas looked confused. "I thought Lydia was your housecarl," he said.

Elise grinned and moved to take a seat at the table, helping herself to a bottle of mead. "She is. Jordis is from Solitude. Lydia is my housecarl here in Whiterun. I had to take care of some items in Solitude, which is why I was away so long. Jordis offered to come with me on the job. Jordis, this is Farkas, he is a member of the Circle."

"One of the twins, right?" Jordis asked, settling into a chair next to Elise.

"Yes. Vilkas is over there." She motioned to him. He was surprised since she had not looked his direction once since walking in. "The Companion we talked to when we entered was Skjor. Aela," she trailed off and looked around, "Does not seem to be here. And Kodlak is most likely downstairs reading."

Vilkas watched as Farkas dropped into the chair next to Jordis and struck up a conversation with her. Elise listened to them talk for a few minutes before standing up and moving away to settle by herself at a small table not far from him. Vilkas watched her out of the corner of his eye as she nursed the bottle of mead and stared down at the table top. Her fingers traced over the whorls of the wood grain, eyes unfocused as she lost herself in thought.

Vilkas was not sure how long they sat there, her deep in thought and him watching her subtly. He was startled from his observation when Aela and Ria entered the hall. The younger woman looked to be pleading with the Huntress. "Aela, it will not happen again," Ria murmured as the two neared where he sat.

"No, it will not, because I will not give you the opportunity to do it again," Aela snarled. "Now get out of my sight." Ria scampered off downstairs and Aela sat down next to Vilkas, blocking his view of Elise.

"Everything alright?" he asked gruffly. He had a bit of a soft spot for the girl Ria, he hoped she had not done something too terrible.

Aela sighed and slumped down where she sat on the bench. "She made a classic whelp mistake. We were up against a group of Forsworn and one of them threw her hands up and surrendered. Ria took it at face value and let her go. The Forsworn woman nearly gutted me not three minutes later while I was finishing off one of her compatriots. I managed to take her down, but not before she sliced me." Aela shifted and indicated the rapidly healing wound on her abdomen.

"Common mistake," Vilkas said.

"Stupid mistake," Elise piped up from the table.

Vilkas leaned past Aela to sneer at her. "Like you would know," he spit out. "Your kind relies on sneaking around and not getting caught. You have never given anybody the opportunity to surrender."

Aela glanced between the two of them, Elise who was still studying the table and Vilkas who was trying to glare holes through the Bosmer woman. "Had it been anybody else you would be petitioning Kodlak to have them removed from the Companions. The only reason you are not doing that with Ria is because you want her in your bed," Elise commented. Her eyes darted up to him, face impassive.

Vilkas rose from his seat and turned on her. "Just like normal, you do not know what you are speaking of," he growled at her. "It would do you well to mind your betters. And everybody is entitled to a mistake or two."

Elise snorted softly and raised one eyebrow. "Everybody or just everybody who is not me?" she questioned before her eyes focused back on the wood grain as if it held the answers to whatever questions where whirling around in her mind.

Aela shifted a bit at the tension that was between the other two and then glanced out over the mead hall, just noticing the new addition. "Who is that?" she asked.

"My housecarl from Solitude, Jordis," Elise responded.

"She and Farkas really seem to be getting along," Aela commented. She glanced slyly at Elise. "You had better get between them if you want to keep his attentions," she teased.

Elise smirked. "Why do you think I brought her with me?" she inquired. "I could tell." The smirk dropped from her lips and a frown pulled at them. "Farkas," she sighed, "He is a sweet man. A woman should be flattered to have garnered his affection."

Aela shifted closer, obviously looking for a bit of gossip. "But," she prompted.

Elise pushed herself up abruptly. "But I am not that woman," she stated with a shake of her head. "He is too," she trailed off obviously searching for the right words. Her eyes flicked to Vilkas and then back to Aela. "Just trust me," she murmured, "I am not that woman." She strode passed them, pausing to have a few words with Jordis and to wish Farkas good night before she disappeared out the door.

"Perhaps she is not as stupid as I thought," Vilkas commented.

"What are you talking about?" Aela questioned. "Elise is brilliant. One of the best additions we have had in ages."

Vilkas rolled his eyes and sat back down next to her. "That woman is not what she seems," he asserted.

"And you and I are?" Aela jested. He gave her a look and she sobered. "None of us are what we seem Vilkas. Why should she be any different?"

"She taints the name of the Companions. We are an honorable group and now we let in a liar like that? Do you know what she told me?" he asked. "She actually told me that she fought Alduin, the World-Eater. Like I would ever believe a milk drinker like her could have fought any dragon, not to mention the most powerful."

Aela frowned. "You did not believe her? You do realize who she is?"

"A liar, an assassin, a common thief. Yes, I realize exactly who and what she is," Vilkas groused.

Aela shook her head and rose, placing a hand on his shoulder. "You my Brother, could not be farther from the truth if you tried." Vilkas' eyebrows rose in surprise and he looked up at Aela, but she was already moving off and helping herself to a bottle of mead before sitting down next to Skjor at the table.


	4. Chapter 4

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

Elise sighed and ran a hand over her brow, wiping away the sweat. She rolled her neck and shoulders and again hefted the two-handed greatsword before she moved into a fighting stance and began attacking the practice dummy.

"You keep going like that the dummy will have you beat in no time," Farkas teased from the porch. She stopped mid thrust and turned to look at him.

"If you know so much why not come down here and give me some tips?" she called back.

"Sorry, Sister, two-handed weapons are Vilkas' specialty, not mine," he returned.

"Great," she answered, "it looks like I am on my own then." She swung at the dummy a few more times and then added, "I thought you were on your way to Solitude."

"Just getting ready to head out," he responded. "Do you have anything to take to Jordis?" he asked coming down to stand near her.

She turned to face him. "Not this time, but thank you for checking." She paused a moment then suggested, "You can take my horse up there if you want to. Then you will have more time there and less time traveling."

Farkas looked chagrinned. "I never got the hang of horses. I am fine walking."

"At least take the carriage Farkas. You do not get to go see Jordis very often, if you travel by carriage you will have more time to spend with her," Elise suggested.

"That is a good point. I might do that. Take care Sister," Farkas gave her a one armed hug.

"Take care as well, Brother," Elise answered. She waved as he walked around the side of the building, nearly colliding with somebody. She heard him throw out a gruff apology but whoever it was ignored him.

Elise groaned once she caught sight of the woman who was walking towards her. "Delphine," she stated.

"And so here I find you, hiding in the ranks of the Companions," the blonde woman accused.

"I am not hiding," Elise retorted, turning back to the dummy and hacking at it violently. "I told you I was going to train so that the next time I face Alduin, I can finish the job."

Delphine grabbed her arm and spun her around, sending the sword flying across the yard. "That was nearly seven months ago," she hissed. "Do not deny it; you are ignoring your duty!"

Elise wrenched her arm from Delphine's grip. "I am not ignoring anything!" she snarled. "And how dare you accuse me of it!"

"I dare because it is obvious to me and all the other Blades that you would rather hide than finish the job you started!" Delphine yelled.

Elise screeched and turned away from the other woman, grabbing the nearest object and hurling it against the wall. She spun back around with a look so nasty on her face that Delphine took a step back. "I did not _choose_ to be the Dragonborn," she growled. "I have done everything the Greybeards asked of me, I have done everything _you_ have asked of me; I have every intention of facing Alduin again, but not until I am ready!" Her voice rose steadily through the rant and when she ended there was so much power behind the words it knocked Delphine back a few paces.

"Do not dare," Delphine said, straightening and pushing a loose hair back from her face, "Do not dare use your Thu'um on me. Without me you would not be anywhere near ready to face Alduin."

"And without me you would still be in Riverwood, wondering how long you had until the Thalmor caught up with you," Elise retorted.

"Have you even talked with Balgruuf yet?" Delphine asked.

Elise sighed and rubbed her temple. "Yes," she answered finally. "He refuses to help until we negotiate a peace treaty between Tullius and Ulfric. He is afraid that one side will use it as an opportunity to attack while the guard is distracted with the dragon."

"Have you arranged the peace council?" Delphine questioned.

"No," Elise stated bluntly. "As soon as we negotiate we will move forward with calling and capturing the dragon and after that, it is off to face Alduin. I am not ready yet."

"You had better get ready," Delphine stated, "Because in a month's time if you have not arranged the peace council I will come here and drag you out myself and force you to finish the job." She spun and walked briskly away.

Elise inhaled deeply, every intention of using her Thu'um to deal with the woman. A hand on her shoulder startled her and she gasped out, her breath coming out as a slight frost, instead of the powerful Shout it would have been. She was surprised to see Vilkas standing next to her. "Do you think that would have been wise?" he asked.

"No," Elise admitted and turned, retrieving the greatsword from where it had landed across the yard. "But it would have felt good," she added. Vilkas laughed and she glanced at him surprised. "I did not know you could laugh," she commented.

"Yes well, it does not happen often," he assured her. "Who was that woman?" he asked, watching as she began attacking the dummy again.

"Delphine, leader of the Blades, Breton pain-in-my-arse," Elise answered. "She was here to remind me of my duty, as if I could forget," she muttered angrily.

"So it is true then," Vilkas said, reaching out and grabbing her arm to stop her mid-swing. He adjusted her grip and her arms and then stepped back motioning for her to continue. "You are the Dragonborn."

Elise was surprised at how much easier using the greatsword was after his slight adjustments. She continued to attack the dummy a few times before she answered. "Yes," she said. "The Dragonborn, the great _Dovahkiin_ of legend and song."

Vilkas moved around her and touched her shoulder. She stopped her attack and he kicked her feet, adjusting her stance. "You do not seem very happy about it," he observed, again motioning for her to continue.

"I was captured by the Imperials while I was simply trying to return home, nearly fried to a crisp in Helgen, and then told that I am the Dragonborn and it is my responsibility alone to try and save Skyrim from a dragon so powerful they call him the 'World-Eater'. Would you be happy?" she asked.

"When you put it that way," he stated. He stood in silence for several minutes watching her work with the greatsword. "I think I know the problem," he said suddenly, startling her. She stopped and turned to face him, eyebrow raised in question. "The sword you are using, it is too heavy."

"It is a standard greatsword," Elise stated. "What better weapon to use when practicing two-handed attacks?" Vilkas motioned for her to wait a moment and disappeared inside Jorrvaskr. He returned a few minutes later carrying an item wrapped in cloth. Elise watched as he unrolled it and pulled out a beautiful ebony katana.

"I think this will work better for you," he said, handing it to her. "It is still a two-handed sword, but much lighter." Elise took it and gave him the greatsword, swinging the katana a few times to get a feel for it. He pointed at the dummy. "Try it now," he ordered.

She turned back to the dummy and tried a few simple maneuvers, a grin slowly sliding across her face. "Now this I might be able to work with," she said.

"Hopefully it will greatly reduce your chances of becoming dragon bait," Vilkas teased. She shot him a glare with no real malice behind it before turning back to the practice.

The two of them stayed there well into the night, Elise attacking the dummy and Vilkas offering advice and comments to help improve her form.


	5. Chapter 5

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

_Thanks so much to everybody who has reviewed and started following this story!_

Vilkas was startled out of sleep when the door to his room flew open and Farkas stomped in. "What is wrong with you?" he growled sleepily. Farkas glowered at him and crossed his arms. "Fine, do not tell me," Vilkas murmured, turning back over in the bed in order to go back asleep.

"She is leaving," Farkas said.

Vilkas sighed and turned to face his brother, waiting expectantly. When no other words were forthcoming he asked, "Who is leaving?"

"Elise," Farkas answered. "She is leaving to fight Alduin. She said she might not be back."

Vilkas shot up in bed. "What? She is leaving?" He knew she had been improving with her swordplay, but he did not expect her to leave so soon. Not after what had happened with the Silver Hand and Skjor. She and Aela had been attempting to eradicate the group and from what Aela had said they were not finished with their mission yet.

"She is packing now," Farkas groused. "I do not want her to go," he added.

Vilkas stood from the bed and patted Farkas' shoulder in sympathy. He knew that his brother had come to care for the Bosmer as a sister and the possibility that she might not come back was obviously affecting him. "What we want does not matter. She has a responsibility." Farkas nodded in understanding. Vilkas directed him out of the room and quickly dressed. He found Farkas standing in the hall with Aela. "Where is she?" he asked. Aela pointed to the room that had once been Skjor's where Elise had reluctantly taken up residence and only to appease Aela.

Farkas pushed the door open and walked in. Elise was sitting on the bed, running one of her daggers over a whetstone. She looked up at him and smiled. "Farkas," she greeted.

He held out a small pouch to her and she took it, a question in her eyes. "Healing potions," he said. "I know it is not much but," he trailed off when she stood and hugged him.

"Thank you Brother," she said.

"Take care of yourself, Sister," he returned.

"I will Farkas. And Farkas, if I do not return," she started.

His eyes hardened. "You will," he said.

She smiled, "But if I do not, please take care of Jordis. I suspect this civil war is going to get much worse soon and Solitude could be at the heart of it. I would hate for her to be at risk because two men cannot put aside their petty quarrels. Promise me Farkas?"

"I will," he vowed.

She hugged him again and he stepped back out of the room. Aela slipped inside next and the women stood and stared at each other. After several minutes Aela held her hand out, a necklace hanging from it. Elise gasped when she saw the wolf head at the end. "Aela," she murmured.

"I know you do not wear heavy armor," Aela said and then swallowed thickly, "So I had Eorlund craft this for you from Skjor's. It is only right now that you are part of the Circle. Skjor," she paused and breathed deeply, "He would have wanted it." Elise took the necklace and slipped it around her neck, the wolf head dropping to rest comfortably against her chest. "Wear it with honor while you venture forth on your quest. And put a few hits in there for him. And me."

Elise laughed and walked forward, hugging Aela briefly and then pulling back to place a light kiss on the cheek of the Huntress. "I will," she said. Aela nodded and moved quickly and quietly from the room. Vilkas thought he saw tears in her eyes but she was gone so quickly he could not be sure.

He stepped into the doorway and watched her silently as she adjusted the necklace and then turned to tuck the bag of potions in her pack. She retrieved her dagger and finished sharpening it and then laid it on the bed next to her other dagger, bow and quiver, and the ebony blade he'd gifted her a month earlier. "Are you sure about this Dragon Bait?" he asked.

She chuckled a bit and glanced at him over her shoulder from where she was inspecting her armor. She turned back to the task at hand and sighed. "Yes, I am," she answered. She placed her armor on the bed next to her weapons, apparently satisfied with the condition it was in.

"Why?" he prodded.

She sighed again and turned around to face him. "Delphine was right," she said finally, "I was hiding here. Maybe not intentionally, but I was." He opened his mouth to argue and she waved a hand to quiet him. "I know, I needed to work on my two-handed attacks and some of the pointers I picked up from Aela on archery will certainly help, but ultimately I _was_ hiding." She motioned him into the room and then pushed the door shut behind him. "That is not the only reason." She turned away from him and pulled up her tunic, baring her back to him.

"By Talos," he gasped. The red wounds that had crossed her back were almost gone leaving thin bleach white scars in their wake. "How?" He looked at her, confused, as she let the tunic drop and turned back around.

"I suspect it is the Blood. No manner of potion or spell has been able to work but ever since Skjor and Aela brought me fully into the Circle I have felt the wounds healing. Not to mention my heightened senses will surely help," she answered.

"I thought you viewed this as a curse?" He watched as she finished tucking closed her small pack, a feeling of panic beginning to well up inside him. He was surprised to realize that he did not want her to go, did not want to have to face the fact that she might not return.

"I did, I do. I have no intention of dying a werewolf and joining Hircine." She frowned a moment and mumbled, "I do not think Nocturnal would let him have me, but that is beside the point." Vilkas gave her an odd look and she shrugged. "It is a long story for another day." She turned away from him and tugged off her tunic. Vilkas shifted uncomfortably, eyes darting over the pale skin of her back before he looked away. He could hear her pulling on her underclothes and armor and his mind searched for a topic.

"What did Kodlak say?" he asked.

"He told me he understood and he knew this day would be coming and he wished me the best of luck." He could hear her moving but kept his eyes averted just in case. Her hand brushed against his arm. "I am finished." He turned to look at her, gaze sweeping over her from crown to toes. She had her dragonscale armor on except for her gloves which were still on the bed. Her Aetherial Crown sat atop her head, the blue glinting in the light from the torch in the room. She smiled at him and turned back to the bed, fastening her daggers on her hips and then slinging her quiver over her shoulder, adjusting it until it left room for her bow and the ebony katana.

Vilkas forced his eyes to pull away from her. He did not want to examine the feelings that were rushing through him at the sight of her so calmly preparing to head off to what would most likely be her death. "Well, I guess that is it," she said.

He glanced back at her. She had her weapons all situated and her pack hanging from her hand. She stood there looking so calm and collected and something in him snapped. He stepped over to her, hands coming up to wrap around her upper arms. She looked at him, eyes wide. "Promise," he murmured, voice coming out gruffly.

"What?" she asked, staring up at him.

"Promise you will come back," he growled, voice low.

Her eyes darted down. "I will not make a promise that I do not know I can keep," she whispered.

"Then make it and keep it," he said, shaking her a bit. She turned her eyes back up to his, mouth open slightly, face uncertain. "Make it," he pleaded with her.

She licked her lips and swallowed. "Okay," she said finally, "I promise." He sagged in relief and pulled her to him, careful not to upset her weapons as he hugged her. He knew the promise did not mean much in the light of the mission she was embarking on, but for some reason hearing it from her eased some of his tension. He stepped back, his arms dropping from her and stood there uneasily. "Take care Vilkas," she said, opening the door to step out.

"Take care Dragon Bait," he responded. She smiled softly at him and then she was gone.


	6. Chapter 6

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

Elise pulled her crown from her head and rubbed her temples. The peace council had gone as well as could be expected, but both sides had ended up accusing her of favoring the other. If Arngeir hadn't been there she would have Shouted Tullius and Ulfric both off the side of the mountain and been done with it. Unfortunately her mentor did not believe in violence and she was forced to interact as nicely as possible with the two of them. The only one at the whole conference she didn't want to kill was Balgruuf.

The Jarl was in front of her, leading the way up to Whiterun from the stables. He nodded to the guards and levered open the gate. "How soon do you want to do this?" he asked her. She paused and thought about it.

"How soon can you be ready?" she retorted.

"I can have the guards prepared and ready to go in the morning," he decided.

She nodded. "I will be there just after sunrise. The sooner we do this the better," she said.

"I agree," he answered. "Is there anything further you need?"

She smiled at him. "No Balgruuf, you are doing enough letting us use your castle."

"Do not think for a moment I am letting any of _them_ use my castle," he stated. "I am letting _you_ use it. You have proven time and again to be an honorable warrior and the champion of Whiterun. I do this for you alone."

She blinked in surprise and then bowed her head to him, saying, "Thank you my Jarl. You honor me."

He nodded and turned, striding briskly back up to Dragonsreach. Elise shook her head a bit after him and then wandered through the streets of the Plains District. She nodded to those who hailed her and she moved into the marketplace, glancing over the stalls as she did.

"Elise?" The voice startled her and she turned to see Farkas and Jordis standing there. "It is you!" he declared happily. He crushed her in a hug before turning her loose. "Is it done? Are you back?"

She smiled sadly. "Sorry Farkas. I am only here for the night and then off to finish the quest."

His happy look dropped. "Oh," he said. "You are coming up to Jorrvaskr right?"

"Of course, Farkas. I wouldn't dream of staying anywhere else tonight," she answered.

The trio made their way up to Jorrvaskr, heading around to the back of the building when they heard what sounded like a fight. Aela and Vilkas were in the yard sparring while everybody else watched. "Come on you," Aela called to Vilkas, "hit me if you can!"

The crowd watching cheered as she taunted him and Elise smiled. She had only been gone two weeks but she missed the easy camaraderie of the group. She leaned up against the rail and watched as the two members of the Circle moved back and forth across the yard, neither gaining ground against the other. It was not until Vilkas caught sight of her and missed a step that Aela was able to land a blow against him, knocking him to the ground. Aela glanced over and grinned at Elise. "Thank you for providing a distraction," she said.

"It was my pleasure," Elise responded, walking over and offering Vilkas a hand up. He accepted it and stood, staring at her in shock. He opened his mouth to speak when Ria popped up between them.

"Oh Vilkas," she cooed, "Are you injured? Do you need anything?" Elise took a few steps back looking between the Imperial woman and Nord man in surprise.

"Well Vilkas, looks like you are being tended to," she said, pushing down the jealousy that flared inside her at the sight of the other woman fawning over him. "Come on Aela," she said turning to the Huntress, "a celebratory drink is in order." She left Vilkas in Ria's hands as the rest of the group moved into the mead hall. The two women each helped themselves to a couple bottles of mead and adjourned to a small table at the side of the room.

"Your quest," Aela said, "is it completed? Have you returned for good?"

Elise sighed and smiled sadly. "Unfortunately the worst is yet to come. I have spent the time since I left negotiating a peace treaty between the two sides of this war. Balgruuf insisted before he would let us use the castle to catch a dragon."

Aela choked on the swallow of mead she had just taken. "Catch a dragon? Are you mad?" she sputtered.

"It is the only way to discover how to get to Alduin," Elise answered. "If we wait for him to return he will be all powerful and we will all be lost."

"And why are you here?" Aela asked. "Need some help catching one?"

Elise laughed. "No, no. We are using Dragonsreach to catch one. Apparently it was built for it." The two looked up when the door opened and Vilkas stormed in, Ria on his heels. Elise snarled and turned away. She knew she had no right to be upset about it, but that did not stop the feeling from roaring inside her.

A cool hand came down on top of hers and she realized that she was clutching the bottle so tightly it had cracked. "It is a recent development," Aela murmured. "She started in on him as soon as you were gone. As far as I can tell he has not returned her advances, but that has not deterred her. I am surprised you returning did not."

"It is not my business. I have no claim on him," Elise muttered.

Aela smiled in understanding. "That does not make it any easier to handle." The two sat in silence as the rest of the Companions filtered into the room and laughter filled the air. Elise watched as Jordis comfortably conversed with the group, Farkas never moving far from her. Elise smiled a bit to herself. Even if she did not return from the mission she was headed out on at least she had brought happiness to two of the people she was close to.

She raised her bottle in a salute to Kodlak when he emerged from the living quarters and he nodded his head at her. Her eyes again moved over the room and she started when she realized Vilkas was staring at her. She tilted her bottle at him but he did nothing in response, eyes boring into her. She met his gaze evenly until Ria tugged on his arm, drawing his attention away. Elise looked away as well, shaking her head in an attempt to gather her scattered thoughts. In a handful of days she would be facing off with the most dangerous creature in Skyrim, now was not the time to be pining over somebody she could not have.

She and Aela sat in comfortable silence until the mead hall had emptied and they were left alone with their thoughts and empty bottles. Eventually Aela rose from the table and patted Elise on the shoulder before disappearing down the stairs.

"Are you trying to torture me?" The gruff voice startled her from her thoughts and she looked up as Vilkas settled into the chair across from her. "I did not expect you to return and suddenly there you were, looking just the same as when you left," he explained. She opened her mouth to speak and he held up a hand, stalling her. "I know your mission is not complete. Farkas told me you are only here for the night. That almost makes it worse." Again she tried to speak and he placed his hand on hers, effectively silencing her. "I had almost accepted that I was never going to see you again. Seeing you now will make it harder."

Elise snorted and eased her hand out from under his. "It looked to me like you have been keeping yourself quite busy since I left," she bit out.

"It is not like that," Vilkas huffed. "She has been persistent, but I am not interested. Not anymore." He looked at her intently and she flushed, a pleased smile pulling at the corners of her mouth. He sighed and rubbed his hand down his face. "I hear you are catching a dragon tomorrow," he said finally.

"Just passed sunrise," she said.

"Should you be asleep?" he asked. "It is after midnight. Sunrise is but a few hours away."

She shrugged and leaned forward, propping both elbows on the table. "Hard to sleep when you know you could be dead in less than a day."

"You should not be so worried," he said seriously, "You promised to return."

"Vilkas," she sighed.

"No," he told her. "You promised and I expect you to keep it. If you do not, I will never forgive you." She shook her head but did not argue. He rose and held out a hand to her. "Now come, you need your rest."

"I told you, I do not think I will get any sleep tonight," she retorted, but took his hand and stood anyway.

"I do not care if I have to hit you over the head to put you out. You are getting some sleep. I will wake you at sunrise," Vilkas ordered. He pulled her behind him and down the stairs. Elise smiled and let herself be led away.


	7. Chapter 7

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

The sound of the main door slamming shut a little too loudly woke him from an uneasy sleep. Vilkas sat up in the bed and strained to hear any noises. Uneven footsteps sounded on the floor above and he slipped out of his bed, grabbing his sword before creeping down the hall and to the stairs. None of the others had stirred and he eased open the door, sneaking his way up. The fire had burned low and the mead hall was dark. He was thankful for his enhanced eyesight as he looked around the room, finally locating the intruder who was leaning heavily on the banister near the door. From the sound of it, the person was panting in pain.

He slipped the rest of the way up and moved across the room quietly. The intruder inhaled and pushed away from the banister, keeping one hand tight on it and carefully stepping down into the main room of the hall. Vilkas raised his sword as he neared, ready to fight if needed, when the familiar scent of forest and fire met his nostrils and he dropped his sword in surprise. The sound startled the figure and it spun too quickly, losing its balance. Vilkas managed to move over and catch her before she could hit the ground. This close to the embers of the fire he could clearly see her face, the old scars on her cheek and two new wounds across her forehead, just below the crown she wore.

"Elise," he breathed out. "You are here."

"I promised," she sighed and then her eyes rolled back in her head and she fainted dead away. He lifted her easily and carried her down to his room, laying her on the bed. He retrieved a torch from the hallway and used it to light his own and then he proceeded to tug her armor off, inspecting her for any wounds that might be visible around the clothes she wore underneath the dragonscale. He sighed in relief when he saw none and tucked the blanket up around her, prepared to wait until she awoke.

He must have dozed off because a light knock on his door woke him the next morning. He hurried to open it, surprised to see Farkas standing outside. His brother normally barged in without warning. "Is it true?" Farkas asked, "Is she back?"

Vilkas blinked. "What?" he asked. Farkas held up Elise's pack and weapons. Vilkas realized that she must have dropped them when she entered the building the night before. "Yes, she is back. Unconscious, but back," he admitted. A grin split Farkas' face and he tried to peer around Vilkas. "I said she is unconscious, so seeing her now will not do you any good," Vilkas chastised him.

Farkas frowned and pushed his way passed Vilkas, looking over at the sleeping woman in the bed. "You realize when she wakes up if she sees how you have left her armor she will kill you," Farkas commented. Vilkas glanced over at the heap of armor on the floor and then moved to pick it up, laying it neatly atop the wardrobe. Farkas laid her pack and weapons on the floor and then headed back into the hallway. "You will tell us when she wakes up, right?" Vilkas nodded. "I will have Tilma bring you something to eat down here," Farkas added.

"Thank you Brother," Vilkas said. He left the door cracked open and moved back over to the chair next to the bed. She looked at peace as she lay there. The constant frown lines that marred her face when she was awake were smoothed out. He was surprised to see how long her hair had gotten. She made it a point to keep it short, never longer than her chin and the ends now brushed against the tops of her shoulders. It had grown a lot in the weeks since he had last seen her.

He sat patiently and silently, nodding his thanks to Tilma when she brought him a meal at noon. He picked at the food and forced a few bites down, unable to stomach much due to his nerves. He found himself reaching out periodically to lightly touch her chest, making sure she was still breathing and the blood of life pumped through her veins.

"Still out?" Vilkas looked up to see Aela standing just inside the door. He nodded and ran a hand over his face. "Go on," Aela said. "You need a break. Let me sit with her a few minutes. Go, walk around, wash up and have a drink." He opened his mouth to retort and she held a hand up. "She is not going to wake up in the next few minutes. And if she does, I'll make her pretend to be asleep until you return."

Vilkas smirked. "Thank you Sister," he said and stood, stretching as he did. He headed across the hall and into Farkas' room to clean up. A quick change of clothes later and he walked back to his room, pausing outside the door when he heard Aela talking.

"- really missed having another woman around here to help me keep these men in line. The twins are nice enough, but there are some things they just don't understand. And Vilkas," there was a sigh here, "he has been beside himself. He hides it well, but Farkas and I can tell how worried he has been. He is restless most nights and he snaps at the whelps more often than normal." A pause and then she continued, "Of course, his snapping got Ria off his case so that might not be a bad thing." He heard the smile in her voice. "Anyway, you need to wake up already so you can regale us with the story of what really happened, instead of forcing us to get our information from the bards. You know how they like to warp stories."

She was silent then and Vilkas tapped on the door before stepping inside. "You look much better," Aela commented. She rose from the chair and patted him on the shoulder. "Do not kill yourself tending to her," she said, "Let the rest of us help you. And get some sleep."

"I will," Vilkas said. He selected a book from the pile on his end table and returned to the chair, prepared to wait as long as it took for her to wake.

He woke to the feeling of fingers sliding through his hair. His head was pillowed on something soft and he smiled. He had not slept that well in quite some time and the restful sleep, coupled with the feeling of the fingers, was amazing. The fingers paused for a moment and then continued their trek through his locks. He shifted, nuzzling into the pillow and was surprised when it moved, shaking with quiet giggles. He sat up, blinking rapidly to clear the sleep from his eyes and turned to see Elise grinning at him.

"You are awake," he breathed out and she nodded. "And you are alive," he added and she nodded again. "And you look like you have been to Oblivion and back," he finished and she frowned. He laughed and reached over, tucking her hair behind her ear. "Is it finished?"

"It is," she said, voice raspy. "Did you not hear the call of the dragons when I returned from Sovngarde?"

"Is that what it was?" he recalled the week earlier when the voices had Shouted loud enough to shake the walls of Jorrvaskr. "I thought it was the Greybeards."

She shook her head. "The remaining dragons were pledging their allegiance," she trailed off into coughs and motioned to him for a drink. He grabbed the bottle of cider Tilma had brought down for him and handed it to her. She sat up and drank deeply, eyes closing in relief when the coughing stopped.

"That was nearly a week ago," he stated. His question of what had taken her so long to return went unsaid.

"I came as soon as I could," she wheezed out. "I did not return from the battle uninjured. The Greybeards would not let me leave until I was healed. The only reason I am here now is because I was able to sneak out without being detected." The last words came out in barely a whisper and she looked at him apologetically. "It turns out Shouting almost non-stop for several hours is not good for you, even if you are Dragonborn," she breathed.

"You should rest," he said. She opened her mouth to object but he held his fingers up to her lips. "At least rest your voice," he chastised her. "It would not do for the Dragonborn to be permanently silent because she did not take care of herself." She grinned and made a motion like she was tying her lips shut. "The others will want to come see you as soon as they know you are awake. Is that okay?" She nodded. "I will let them know that you cannot yet speak." He smiled when she reached out and squeezed his hand and then he slipped out of the room.

As soon as the door closed behind him he leaned against it and tried to compose himself. It had been ages since he had let his guard down like that. He had to be careful, a good number of the Silver Hand were still on the loose and one never knew when they might strike.

He reminded himself that she was the Dragonborn, and if the information he had gathered on her was correct she was heavily involved with mages, thieves and assassins, not to mention the rumors of Daedra worship. She was not the type of person he should be involved with. He had allowed himself to care about her when there was a good chance she would never come back and he would not have to deal with the issues that now stood between them.

He straightened up and shook himself then turned to get Farkas and Aela. Starting tomorrow it would go back to how it was before that fateful day when he had overheard her in the yard with Delphine. He was next in line as Harbinger of the Companions; it would not do to mingle with her kind, Dragonborn or no. Steeled with his decision he marched up the stairs and asked Farkas and Aela if they could help move Elise to her room. If he was going to start distancing himself from her, the sooner the better.

_Silly Vilkas. Just doesn't know what's good for him does he?_


	8. Chapter 8

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

Elise swallowed back the bile that rose in her throat as the stench of the witches' heads hit her nose again. Even though she had a cloth tied over her nose and mouth the odor was so strong she could almost taste it. The only reason she had not burned them by now was because they were the only thing that could bring Kodlak peace and after everything that had happened these past few months, she owed him that much.

She knew something was wrong when she saw the crowd gathered at the bottom of the steps to Jorrvaskr. She pulled the cloth away from her face and tucked it into her pack, the one that did not hold several disgusting hagraven heads, and slowed her step, peering around.

She caught sight of the first body as she started up the stairs. Torvar stood over the corpse, weapon in hand and ready. She looked at him and he answered without her even asking. "The Silver Hand," he said, "They finally had the nerve to attack Jorrvaskr. We got most of them, but I think a few stragglers made it out."

Elise frowned. She and Aela had continued their campaign against the Silver Hand, but had been more careful about it once Kodlak caught wind of their actions. A twinge of guilt ran through her that she could have been the reason they attacked. She glanced over at Aela who had a few bodies lying at her feet. The Huntress smirked and said, "These two are not a problem anymore."

Elise attempted to smirk back, but it came across as a grimace. She quickly mounted the steps to Jorrvaskr and pushed open the door. Her heart leapt into her throat at the sight of Kodlak lying still on the ground, Farkas and Njada bending over his lifeless body.

"Where have you been?" Vilkas growled.

She kept her eyes on the body of her Harbinger and answered, "I was doing Kodlak's bidding."

Vilkas snorted and said, "I hope it was important because it means you were not here to defend him!" She finally turned to look at him and saw the rage and pain written on his face. She opened her mouth to answer but he did not let her. "The Silver Hand. They finally found enough courage to attack Jorrvaskr," he spit out. "We fought them off, but…" He sighed and ran a hand over his face then motioned vaguely in the direction of Kodlak's body. "The old man… Kodlak… he is dead."

Elise closed her eyes, the pain of loss stabbing into her heart. She swallowed back tears and glanced around the room. "Was anyone else hurt?" she asked.

Vilkas shook his head. "No, but they made off with all our fragments of Wuuthrad." His hand clenched into a fist. "But you and I are going to reclaim them," he stated. "We will bring the battle to their chief camp. There will be none left living to tell their stories, only songs of Jorrvaskr will be sung!" he declared. "We will avenge Kodlak. And they will know terror before the end," he vowed.

"Should we honor Kodlak first?" she asked.

"It will take them some time to prepare everything for the pyre," Vilkas responded. "And they will wait until we have returned. I have already talked to Farkas and Aela about it."

Elise glanced over at Farkas and he nodded once at her. "Why me?" she asked Vilkas, moving around him and heading towards the stairs down to the living quarters.

"It seems fitting since your actions brought the Silver Hand here in the first place," he spit at her.

Elise shouldered open the door and bit back a sigh. She did not know what had happened the day she had returned from killing Alduin, but since then Vilkas had either avoided her or gone out of his way to be cruel to her. It was such a contrast from the warm man she had known in the month before she left to finish her quest that she often thought perhaps she had died and was trapped in a pocket of Oblivion designed especially to torture her.

The only thing that had kept her sane was Kodlak's quiet reassurances, and now he was dead; slain by the very people who she had been working to destroy. Her fist clenched tight around the pack in her hand and she slammed open the door to her room, Vilkas still on her heels. "I am not the only one who has been hunting them," she reminded him. She carefully tucked the bag of witch heads in a trunk at the foot of her bed and locked it.

"No, but I was not leaving _you_ here in charge with Farkas," Vilkas retorted. Elise gave him a sidelong glance, but instead of replying reached into her pack and pulled out her map of Skyrim. She unfolded it and held it out to him.

"Where is this camp?" she asked.

He pointed to a spot on the map, "Driftshade Refuge."

Elise looked at it, finger tracing the path from Whiterun to it. "Perfect," she said, "We can stop at Heljarchen Hall on the way there. I need to exchange my weapons and armor."

"What is Heljarchen Hall? And why do you need to exchange anything?" Vilkas asked, watching as she pulled a few items from her pack and dumped them on the bed.

"My estate, and these weapons are made to fight magic users. Last I checked the Silver Hand did not use those means," she answered and then walked out of the room, leaving him to gape after her. By the time he caught up with her she was waving goodbye to Farkas and pushing open the door to head outside.

"Do not leave any of them alive!" Torvar ordered. Elise smiled grimly and nodded.

"Make them bleed," Aela snarled. Vilkas and Elise moved passed them and easily through the crowd at the base of the steps.

It was nearly dawn when they reached Heljarchen Hall. Vilkas stopped in awe at the manor that sat before him. "This is _yours_?" he asked, disbelief lacing his voice.

"It is. Now come inside before the giant over the hill catches wind of your scent and comes to smash you," Elise answered. She unlocked the door and pushed it open, holding it so he could go in first. She smirked to herself when he stopped two steps into the entrance hall, staring in amazement.

Along the walls were several weapon racks, all filled with powerful weapons gifted to her by various Jarls. The door on the other side opened into a large dining area. To the right of that was her armory, filled with more weapons and armor sets. To the left was her greenhouse where she had several plants growing year round to keep her alchemy table stocked and at the back of the house was her trophy room. Upstairs were the bedrooms and several bookcases, filled to overflowing with books. "Welcome to my home," she said and moved around him in the direction of the armory. "Well, one of them."

"Who did you kill to get this?" he inquired.

She shook her head at him. "I did not kill anybody," she answered. She walked into the armory and eyed the weapon rack with one-handed swords hung on it. "I took care of a problem for the Jarl of Dawnstar and he sold me the grounds. I have spent the last year and a half building and supplying this place with the help of my steward, Gregor. Which reminds me, he is most likely asleep, along with the rest of the servants, so we will need to be quiet." She reached out and grabbed the Gauldur Blackblade, giving it a few swings to test it out. She pulled her dragonbone dagger from her hip and hung it where the Blackblade had just resided. She considered the other weapons and then decided to keep Mehrune's Razor as her off hand.

"Servants?" he asked as he ogled the armory. "What servants?"

"Oriella, the bard, and Markus, a carriage driver. They all have beds upstairs and it is early yet," she responded.

Vilkas stood in the door and watched her as she moved around the room, debating on what else to take. She turned around and looked at the armor mannequin in the corner, the one with her Dark Brotherhood armor on it. She knew it would be ideal for this mission and since Vilkas already hated her there would be no harm in wearing it. She quickly removed it from the mannequin and slipped passed him, heading up the stairs to change. She switched out her bows at the same time, leaving her enchanted ebony bow lying on her bed and replacing it with her dragonbone bow. She scribbled down a quick note to let Gregor know she had been there and then steeled herself for what would most likely be an uncomfortable trip.

"Ready," she stated as she walked back downstairs.

Vilkas looked her over but if he recognized her armor he didn't say anything about it. She led the way out of the house and then locked the door again before they both turned north.

They were an hour into the trip when he finally spoke. "I cannot believe you are wearing the armor of _murderers_ to avenge Kodlak," he stated.

She rolled her shoulders and kept walking as she answered, "I know you do not always agree with my methods, but they have kept me alive this long and I will not change them now for you."

"You will be changing them when we get to Driftshade," he muttered.

She spun on him and stuck her finger in his face. "Listen to me you _overgrown mutt_. I am just as upset about Kodlak's death as you are. I want revenge just as much as you do, but do not think for a moment that I am going to let you do something stupid and get me killed. I have survived too much in my life to have it wasted because you do not agree with my methods. We _will_ use stealth at Driftshade and you _will_ listen to me or so help me I will leave you to their mercy!" She was panting by the time she had finished, but it felt good to get some of her frustration off her chest. "Now let's go," she snarled and surprisingly, he obeyed without a word.

She ordered him to crouch down a good distance away from Driftshade. "Why in Oblivion do you have me sneaking around already?" he complained. "We are nowhere near them."

Elise rolled her eyes and resisted pinching the bridge of her nose. Instead she inhaled deeply and breathed out, "Laas Yah Nir." Immediately the red auras of life appeared and she pulled her bow out, drawing back an arrow and lining up the shot. She took her time, knowing that she was at the very edge of her range and she wanted to make it count. She let the arrow fly and it made almost no sound as it cut through the air and struck the head of the Silver Hand member who was standing by the door. Another one who had been sitting as lookout on top of the roof called out and stood up, making it easier for her to line up her second shot. It hit him in the chest and a second arrow finished the job, sending him toppling over to land in a heap on top of the first one.

"How did you do that?" Vilkas asked, awe tinting his voice. "How did you even know they were there?"

"The Shout I just used shows me the aura of any creature nearby," she murmured back, slowly moving towards the door, eyes alert.

She eased open the door to the building that once may have been part of a fort. Inside the door there were several werewolf heads on pikes and she wrinkled her nose in disgust. Vilkas followed her in, sounding like a heard of mammoths compared to her. She bit back a sigh and just hoped she could take out most of them before they heard him.

"We are in, come on," he said, standing up and making to charge down the hall. Her hand shot out and she grabbed him, yanking him back next to her.

"I told you, we do this my way," she hissed. "Now just wait a minute until I can Shout again." He fidgeted with his sword, but remained standing there. She felt the magic of the Shout finish seeping out of her and she called it again, blinking in surprise at the sheer number of auras that flared up. "We have our work cut out for us," she mumbled.

"Great, now come on," he said again, starting down the hall. She grabbed him again and this time yanked him with enough force to slam him into the wall. He blinked in surprise at her show of strength.

"What part of _my way_ did you not understand?" she snarled.

"All of it," he responded. "I am Acting Harbinger. You will listen to me. You are a low down, dirty, sneaky, thieving assassin. If you think I am going to listen to you, you have another thing coming."

"That is _it!_" she nearly shrieked. "Yes, I am a member of the Mages' College. I needed to be so I could learn enough spells to heal myself during my battles and to learn the best way to fight magic. Yes, I am a member of the Thieves' Guild, but now I can move so silently I could sneak up on even Kodlak. Yes, I am a member of the Dark Brotherhood, but I needed to know I had powerful allies at my back, and I do not mean just the assassins. Yes, I am the champion of every Daedric Prince known, but I would rather have the Daedra with me than against me. You may think I am nothing but a selfish, thieving piece of garbage but everything I did; _everything¸_ was in preparation to fight Alduin."

He sneered at her and opened his mouth to answer when a noise in the hall caught their attention. She dropped to a crouch and crept up to the entrance, peering around the corner. She pulled an arrow from the quiver and knocked it, drawing back and letting it fly. It missed the man in the hallway by a couple of inches and clattered off the wall. She ground her teeth and watched as he inspected the arrow and then turned suspicious eyes down the hall.

She pulled back around the corner and motioned to Vilkas. He readied his sword and waited until the unsuspecting man walked out of the hallway. Two swipes later and his headless body lay at their feet.

"Our conversation is not finished," he snapped, "after we are done here."

Her eyes narrowed. "Fine," she responded.

Several hours later she finished wrapping up the last piece of Wuuthrad and tucked it into her pack. She turned to see him leaning against a pillar, watching her. "Where do you go when you are gone for so long on a job?" he asked.

She bit her lip and looked down at the floor, knowing he would not like her answer. "I cannot tell you," she answered finally. "But I swear on my life that I am not going on jobs for any of them," she added.

"Why should I believe you?" he asked.

"Why should you not?" she shot back. "When have I ever directly lied to you? I may not have told you all my affiliations when I first joined the Companions, but I certainly did not deny them when you brought it up." She closed her pack and threw it over the shoulder opposite her bow and quiver. "Look Vilkas, I do not know what happened that caused you to hate me so much, but I am sorry it happened. Some of the happiest moments I had during those dark times in the months before my fight with Alduin were those we spent together." She moved towards the barred door and levered up the piece of wood. "If I promise to someday tell you where I go when I leave, will you promise to tell me why you hate me?"

He stood there, still leaning against the pillar, and stared at her for several long moments. "Yes," he said finally. "I give you my word." She nodded and together they left Driftshade Refuge.

_AN: Vilkas is just so stubborn! _


	9. Chapter 9

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

_Maybe Vilkas will get his act together hm? I did deviate some from the standard Companion storyline, so this is slightly AU._

Vilkas walked slowly, allowing Elise to take the lead as they made their way along the road. She was smiling happily, completely ignoring the fact that she was covered in the blood of the small group of Silver Hand members they had found hiding in Shriekwind Bastion. It had been almost two months since the two of them had destroyed the main camp of the Silver Hand and they had slowly been rooting out the rest of them all across Skyrim after the Circle had agreed it would be best to destroy the Silver Hand before they attempted to enter Ysgramor's Tomb and discover if there was a way to heal Kodlak even after death. According to their sources this bunch had been the last of them.

Eorlund had repaired Wuuthrad and turned it over to Elise, much to Vilkas's initial dismay. Eorlund had then turned Kodlak's journal over to him and to say he was surprised by the contents was an understatement. He was sure that Elise had no idea what was written there. She had taken Wuuthrad reluctantly, and now wore the battle-axe with pride, using it in every fight since then, despite the history behind it.

He bit back a smile when Elise paused to pluck a blue mountain flower and spin it around before holding it to her nose to inhale. After their conversations in Driftshade Refuge and reading Kodlak's journal he had begun treating her with more civility, though he was still careful to maintain his distance. The words they had exchanged had revealed yet another side to this complex woman and he was sure that if he allowed himself to get too close again he would fall too hard to ever let her go.

It was his focus on her that kept him from noticing the ambush until it was too late. He felt an arrowhead slide into the skin at the side of his neck, the silver burning where it touched. He froze mid-step and must have made a sound because Elise was turning and she looked terrified when she saw him and then something in her shifted and her face became hard and cold as she tugged her dagger off her hip and held her hand towards him and the last thing he remembered as he collapsed to the ground and everything started to go black was that death felt a lot warmer and safer than he ever thought it would.

He awoke with a start and bolted upright. He was in an unknown bed in a room he didn't recognize. His armor had been removed and he was wearing clothes that were not his own. The smell of warm food met his nose and he turned to find a covered plate on the end table along with a note. He unfolded it and read:

_Vilkas, your armor is in the wardrobe if you want to put it back on. Sorry if the clothes do not fit well, they were some that I found on a job a while back and had not gotten around to selling yet. There is a wash basin in the next room and more clothes if you want to change. Be careful with your neck, it is not fully healed. Eat up and if you feel up to it, join us outside. Elise_

He sighed in relief knowing that not only was he in a safe home, but Elise had apparently made it out of the battle unscathed. He ate the meal, pleasantly surprised at how good it tasted, and then opened the wardrobe to inspect his armor and make sure it was still in one piece. He stretched and felt his neck, inspecting the damage from the arrow. The wound was small, about half as long as his finger and felt like it was healing well. He was lucky; it had struck right next to a major artery. Had he been alone he probably would not have lived. He found the next room, which appeared to be another bedroom, and located the basin, washing himself off and then pulling on some of the clothes he found in a dresser. They were a bit loose but fit well enough. He tugged on a pair of boots and then found a door that appeared to let out onto a balcony.

The sound of swords clashing met his ears as he walked outside and he rushed to the side of the balcony thinking that perhaps they were under attack. Instead he saw Elise, wearing a tunic and breeches, facing off against a Redguard woman. Each held a pair of scimitars as they were sparring. "Come on, Ma!" a young Redguard boy yelled from off to the side, "You can do better than that!" A young Nord girl sat next to him, both of them watching avidly. In the distance two men sat in a carriage watching the fight with mild interest.

"I have told you time and again," Elise panted, "I am not very good with scimitars!" As soon as she said that the Redguard woman lunged and knocked one and then the other sword from Elise's hands. She held them up in surrender and bowed. "Again your expertise outweighs mine!" Elise said. The Redguard laughed and sheathed her swords, moving to pick the other two up off the ground as well. The girl took the opportunity to rush towards Elise and jumped into her arms.

"I do not care if you are no good with the scimitars Mama," she said, "I still think you are the best Mama ever."

Elise laughed, "Well thank you Sofie! I think you are the best daughter ever." She hugged the girl and then lowered her back to the ground. "Now that is enough of that. You two have chores to do."

Both children groaned. "Aw Ma," the boy said. "You told me you would show me some two-handed sword stuff!"

Elise puffed out a breath of air and looked at him. "Alesan, why you had to choose a weapon I am not proficient in I will never understand. If you get your chores done before night falls I will show you what I can, otherwise you have to wait until tomorrow." The boy took off like a shot, around the corner and out of sight.

Vilkas chose that moment to make his way down the stairs and came up behind Elise. "Children?" he asked, voice disbelieving. He mentally calculated and she would have been very young indeed when she had them to be the mother of children that age.

She laughed a bit under her breath. "So now you know my secret," she said turning to look at him. "This is where I go between jobs." She waved her hand around to encompass the whole area.

"Children," he repeated still in shock. "You have children."

She chuckled again. "I did not think the arrow struck close enough to addle your brain, but perhaps I was wrong."

He frowned at her and she looked at him, a small grin twitching at her lips. He stepped back and eyed her realizing how much more relaxed she appeared than normal. Her stance was easy and she had a carefree look about her. "How old where you when you had them?" he asked, his astonishment bleeding into his voice.

She laughed outright and turned, motioning for him to follow her. "I adopted them," she explained as she led him around the house. He took in the livestock that were there as well as the garden. "This is my other estate, Lakeview Manor. When I finished it I brought the kids here. Poor Alesan was running around in the cold at Dawnstar and Sofie, the dear was selling flowers to survive in Windhelm. There was no way I could leave them like that."

"You have children," he said again. "You adopted children. You." He stared at her and she turned to face him from where she had been watching the kids do their chores.

"Vilkas, maybe you should go back inside and lay down," she suggested, putting her hand on his arm and leading him towards the house.

"Who is that?" a small voice piped up. The two turned to look at the girl, Sofie, who had come over.

Elise smiled and crouched down to Sofie's level. "This is my friend, Vilkas. We were traveling together when he was injured so I brought him here to get better." She rose back up and turned to him. "Vilkas, this is my daughter Sofie. She is the best hide 'n' go seeker in all the hold and she's learning how to fire a bow. She will rival Aela someday." By the time she was done the young boy had come over to join them and was eyeing Vilkas. Elise squatted back down and pulled him over. "Alesan, this is Vilkas. Vilkas, this is Alesan. He wants to grow up to be a strong warrior. He is trying to learn how to use two-handed swords, but I am not the best instructor." She rubbed his hair as she stood and smiled at both of them.

"Perhaps I could show him a thing or two," Vilkas offered. Elise's head whipped around so fast he was surprised she did not strain her neck.

"Wow, really?" Alesan cried, jumping up and down excitedly. "That would be great! Thanks a lot!" He ran off to finish his chores with Sofie trailing after him at a much slower pace.

Elise was still looking at him as if he were Pelagius the Mad. He shifted uncomfortably knowing what question would follow. The problem was he was not sure why he had offered to teach the lad, except perhaps that he was reminded of himself and Farkas when they were young. She stared at him for several more moments and then shook her head and turned, moving into the house. He followed her inside without thought, watching her as she headed into the kitchen, tugging an apron off the hook and wrapping it around herself. She fussed about, checking various dishes that were already cooking.

She did not seem to mind as he stared at her, amazed at this completely different person. She glanced over to see him watching and she flushed. "What?" she asked, rubbing her arm uncomfortably.

He shrugged. "To see you like this seems unnatural," he explained.

She turned back around to fiddle with the dishes that sat on the table in front of her. "It is not," she said after a time. "Unnatural I mean. Before everything," she trailed off and turned to look at him. "Before Alduin, before Helgen, before it all, this," she waved her arm around, "was my life. I did not have children but I had a home, a father. I was not always the warrior woman everybody in Skyrim knows."

Vilkas opened his mouth to respond and then realized that she was right. He had never considered what her life was prior to the dragon burning Helgen and most people knew only of her adventures after. She had never mentioned it but then, he had never thought to ask. She was the Dragonborn; it was just assumed that she was always a warrior. It was a bit of a shock to realize that she was not what he had thought. He continued to watch her for a few moments when Alesan appeared at his elbow.

"Chores are done, Ma! Can he show me about swords now?" he asked excitedly.

Elise smiled over her shoulder at the lad. "A promise is a promise," she answered. "Just be back inside with enough time to clean up for dinner." Alesan cheered and tugged on Vilkas' arm pulling him into the dining room.

"Let me get my sword," he said and disappeared back into what appeared to be a storage room. He came back out a few minutes later with a wooden sword in hand. "Ready!" he exclaimed. Vilkas nodded and the two of them headed outside.

The sun was sinking low in the skies when Vilkas finally convinced Alesan that they needed to go inside. The boy bounded up the steps and into the house leaving Vilkas to trail behind. He found Sofie and Elise in the kitchen arguing. "Mama, you always say I have to wash up and change for dinner. Let me set the table and you go change!" The little girl huffed and crossed her arms. Elise groaned and threw her hands up in the air.

"Okay, you are right. You can set the table. If you need help before I am ready you can ask Rayya." Elise moved out of the kitchen and caught sight of him. "How did the training go?" she asked.

"I will not lie, the boy almost wore me down," Vilkas answered.

Elise laughed. "I am not surprised. He seems to have an endless supply of energy. How did he do?"

"Quite well," Vilkas responded. "He has good form for one so young. You have taught him well."

She blushed. "Only because you taught me so well," she said. She paused at the door to the master bedroom. "There should be more clothes upstairs if you want to wash up before dinner. It is probably a good thing I never got around to selling all that stuff." Vilkas nodded his thanks and she disappeared into the room.

He headed upstairs, nearly colliding with the Redguard woman. "Hello," he greeted her.

She looked him over. "I am Rayya, steward of this estate. And you are?"

"Vilkas of the Companions," he answered. She frowned slightly and then nodded to him and moved down the stairs. He raised his eyebrow after her and then walked into the room he had awoken in. The two men he had noticed earlier were sitting on the bed talking. "I am Vilkas of the Companions." He stated.

"I am Llewellyn the Nightingale," one of the men responded with a low bow. "I am the bard of this estate. That is Gunjar, he is the carriage driver." The other man grunted and then walked out of the room. "I apologize for my compatriot," Llewellyn stated. "He is a man of few words." With that he nodded and then exited the room as well.

Vilkas watched them both move down the stairs, a confused look on his face. He shook his head and turned back to the room. A quick wash and a change of clothes later and he went back down to the dining room. Rayya was seated at the table, a book in her hands. Gunjar was next to her, eyes like a hawk on the children. Alesan and Sofie sat across from them and next to each other. As he watched Alesan elbowed Sofie and she squeaked and turned, punching him in the arm. Llewellyn was standing off to the side singing. Vilkas took a seat next to Rayya and kept an eye on the kids, smiling in amusement as they bickered with each other.

"Here we go!" Elise called, coming from the kitchen carrying a large dish of meat. Vilkas had to consciously keep his jaw from dropping open at the sight of her. She had changed from a tunic and breeches into a lovely dress. Her hair was swept back from her face and held there with a series of decorative clips. He could see earrings dangling from her ears and the wolf head necklace that Aela had given to her rested comfortably against her bosom.

She set the dish down on the table and then sashayed back into the kitchen to retrieve the rest of the meal. His eyes were drawn to the sway of her hips and he swallowed, forcing his eyes away from her and down to the meal in front of them. It was going to be harder than he had originally thought to keep his distance from her.


	10. Chapter 10

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

_Thanks for all the lovely reviews. Seems that Vilkas is finally getting his act together._

Elise shifted atop the stone wall behind Jorrvaskr, leaning against a pillar and staring out over the fields of Whiterun hold. Thoughts flitted through her mind as quickly as the torchbugs that were starting to wink over the crops as the sun sank lower in the sky.

A smile crossed over her lips as she heard the door open and Vilkas stepped out. It had been two months since she had cleansed herself of the beastblood, but she could still sense when he was near. She did not turn as he walked over and leaned against the wall, looking up at her. "You look very far away," he commented after a time.

She turned her eyes from the darkening land and graced him with a small grin. "A lot on my mind is all," she responded.

"I have heard that it helps to talk about things," he shot back, raising an eyebrow at her. She bit back a laugh as he threw the words at her that she had used on him a month ago when he was having a hard time deciding if he wanted to travel back to Ysgramor's Tomb and cleanse himself.

She hummed under her breath and swung her legs over so that she faced him. They stayed like that for several moments, her sitting on the wall staring down at him and him looking up at her, one arm on each side of her legs where they hung. He waited patiently for her to speak, a small grin on his face while he watched the emotions dance so openly over hers. Finally she sighed and closed her eyes before saying, "I am going to have to leave Jorrvaskr for a while."

She peeked her eyes open when he did not answer and saw him frowning at her in concern. "Why?" he asked simply.

She reached up and rubbed the back of her neck, shrugging one shoulder. "You have noticed the surge in vampire movement?" she inquired.

"Of course, almost half of our contracts now are to eliminate vampires. What does that have to do with you leaving?" His eyes bored into hers and she turned her head away, unable to meet his gaze.

"You have also heard the rumors of the Dawnguard reforming?" He inhaled sharply and she braced herself for the rant that was sure to come.

He surprised her by pushing away from the wall and turning away, running both hands through his hair. "I should have known," he said finally, turning back to look at her. "I had hoped that you would not get a notion in your head to run off and join them. It appears I was wrong."

"You expected this?" she asked, eyes wide in shock.

He smiled wryly. "You are the Dragonborn. Saving the world is in your blood. Literally," he answered wryly.

She laughed and shook her head at him. "So you will be Acting Harbinger while I am gone?" she inquired.

"Are you sure you want me to do it?" he questioned.

"I have given it a lot of thought and I think you would be best. Besides it is only until I am able to return. I do not know how long I will be, hopefully only a month or two," she stated. "I need to meet with the rest of the Circle, but I wanted to speak with you first."

He walked up near to her again and peered up at her, chin almost touching her legs. "Why me first?" he asked.

She glanced away from him for a moment. "Because," she answered finally. "Just because."

He snorted but did not push the issue, instead reaching up to help her. She slid off the wall, his hands moving lightly against her hips until they gripped her waist and guided her down to the ground. Her hands fell to his shoulders to steady herself and as her feet touched the ground she looked up at him, breath catching at their closeness. They stood there for several moments until a loud crash from inside Jorrvaskr caught their attention. Vilkas released her and took a step back, turning to the door. "Come," he said, "I will make sure that nothing important is broken and you can round up Farkas and Aela for a meeting."

Several hours later found the four of them sitting around the table in the rooms that were once Kodlak's, a collection of empty mead bottles between them. "You do know you can hunt vampires here just as easily as you can with the Dawnguard," Aela commented.

Elise laughed. "I know," she answered. "From the information I have been able to gather though, the Dawnguard are actively investigating where the vampires are coming from, not just hunting them. I plan on going to the fort to join them and help them eliminate the source."

"Let them worry about the source," Farkas cut in, "We keep killing off the vampires and eventually there just will not be any more left."

"You do have a point," Elise mused, tapping her chin in thought. "But I think it would be quicker to help find the source. You can keep fighting the good fight out here and I will do all the dirty work there. Deal?"

Farkas raised his bottle of mead and Elise clinked hers against it before taking a long drink. "I have two other favors to ask of you all," she started. All three turned curious eyes to her and she fidgeted with the bottle. "I am going to be bringing my children to Breezehome," she said.

"Children!" Farkas gasped.

"We are not babysitters," Aela growled.

Vilkas said nothing but his eyebrows rose in question. Elise held her hand up to quiet them. "Yes, children," she responded. "I have two. I adopted them after defeating Alduin. They currently live on my estate near Falkreath. And I do not intend for you to be babysitters." She sighed and looked down at the table. "I want them somewhere safe. My steward has reported an increase in vampire activity in the area down there. I feel that they will be safer within the walls of Whiterun. Unless," she paused and leveled a serious look at them, "Unless Ulfric gets it in his bloody head that he should attack Whiterun."

"What do you want us to do?" Vilkas interrupted. "You know we are neutral in the war."

"I do, I know that and I am glad for that," Elise answered. "I simply ask that if Ulfric makes a move to attack the city you bring the children, not just my children but all the town children, here to Jorrvaskr and keep them safe. Will you do that?"

The twins and Aela shared a look and Vilkas finally said, "Yes. We will do that. There is no reason for the children to be caught in this conflict."

Elise exhaled in relief. "Thank you," she breathed out. "Thank you all so much."

"The second favor?" Aela asked.

Elise pushed away from the table and walked around the room, hands running through her hair. "Before I tell you, I want you all to know that I have given this a lot of thought and I believe this will help me with my quest." She turned to face them, reaching up to fidget with the tip of her right ear nervously. "Aela I need you to turn me again," she said finally.

As Aela grinned and nodded, Vilkas pushed away from the table and stood. "What?" he asked. "You willingly go back to that? What if you are not able to turn back?"

Aela snarled at Vilkas and Elise let go of her ear, frowning at him. "Yes, I willingly go back. The heightened senses will help me with the hunt against the vampires. And I still have three of the witches' heads. I can go through the purity ritual again when my quest is over."

"And if you die before then you go to Hircine's hunting grounds," he growled, hands slamming down on the table and sending the bottles rattling.

Elise flipped her hand dismissively. "If I die Hircine will have to battle at least four other Daedric princes for my soul. If nothing else it will be amusing to watch."

Vilkas pulled up in shock and Farkas and Aela blinked at her in surprise. After several minutes of silence Farkas cleared his throat. "I believe that decides it," he said. "Vilkas will be Acting Harbinger while you are gone, if Ulfric attacks we will protect the town children and Aela will grant you the gift of the beastblood for your quest. Is there anything else?"

Elise shook her head. "I really do appreciate this. I cannot explain it but joining the Dawnguard, eliminating the vampires, it is something that I _have_ to do. I thank you for your understanding." She turned to the door and then paused looking back at Aela. "I would like to bring the children here before I turn. I should be back within the week and we can do it then."

"It would be an honor, Sister," Aela responded, raising her bottle in a toast to Elise. Elise smiled tightly and glanced at the twins. Farkas was looking at her with mild concern in his eyes and Vilkas was glaring at her so coldly that she shivered. She nodded goodbye to the room in general and moved quickly up the stairs and outside.

Vilkas caught her at the bottom of the stairs to Jorrvaskr and grabbed her arm, tugging her behind a nearby house. "The blood?" he hissed. "What are you thinking?"

She pulled her arm from his grip. "You know as well as I do that it will help me in this quest."

"I thought you agreed that it was a curse. That we are better without it," he said.

"I do," she snarled. She looked up at him and saw the concern in his eyes and the anger died inside her. "I do," she sighed. "I completely agree that it is a curse and I did not make this decision lightly. You _know_ that it will help me."

His face softened and he sighed also. "I know," he said gruffly. "I know but I do not like it. What if something happens?"

"It will not," she said confidently.

"And if it does?" he pressed.

She reached up and placed her hand on his cheek. "Then you take one of the heads from my trunk and go to Ysgramor's Tomb and purify me like we did for Kodlak. Would you do that for me?"

His hand came up to cover hers. "I promise," he vowed.

"Thank you Vilkas," she murmured and placed a quick kiss on his cheek before she turned and disappeared into the night.


	11. Chapter 11

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

He shifted on his bed as he heard his door creak open. His hand slid up by his head for the dagger he kept there and he waited, keeping his breathing steady as whoever it was neared him. "Put it down Vilkas." Aela's soft voice met his ears. "I know you have been awake."

He turned to face her and raised an eyebrow in question. "Elise is back," she murmured. He shot up in bed only to be stopped by her hand. "She is not alone."

"She has brought others here before," Vilkas responded.

"Yes," Aela agreed, "but none of them were vampires."

"What?" Vilkas hissed. "Are you sure?"

"I smelled Elise first and was going to greet her when I smelled the vampire as well. They have not moved from just inside the door and they do not appear to be talking. I do not know what is going on, but I was not going up alone." She jerked her head in direction of the door. "Farkas is in the hallway armed and ready. If some vampire trash thinks they can take our Harbinger captive they have another thing coming," she growled.

Vilkas rose and quickly readied himself before meeting Aela and Farkas in the hall. Aela took the lead and the three moved quietly to the stairs. It was still bright in the common room and Vilkas realized it was not as late as he thought it was. His eyes turned towards the doors and he spied Elise standing at the top of the few stairs there, arms spread out in front of whoever, or whatever, was behind her. The figure behind her was cloaked and for the first time since he had purified himself of the blood, he missed it.

Aela growled in her throat as she slinked towards Elise. "I know what you are thinking," Elise's strong voice cut through the silence. "It is not like that. She is assisting me in my quest. I ask that you hear us out before you act."

Aela growled again and Vilkas placed a hand on her arm. "You had better explain quickly," he said.

Elise sucked in a breath and stepped to the side allowing the woman to step forward. "This is Serana," she said. "I know she is a vampire. She is helping me stop her father from completing his quest."

"What is her father's quest?" Farkas asked.

"To extinguish the sun," Serana interjected. "We think." She shrugged her shoulders and glanced at Elise. "Prophecies tend to not be very specific."

"And why are you helping to stop him?" Aela asked.

"My father would use it to rule the world. All living people would become cattle for him and his kind to feed upon," Serana responded.

"And you do not agree with his plans?" Vilkas asked.

"I enjoy the power I have from being a vampire and the immortality that comes with it, but I do not want to see life as we know it wiped out. I am content with feeding off the lowlifes that wander across Tamriel. Not to mention my father seriously underestimates the strength of mortals," Serana answered.

Elise stepped forward, a concerned look on her face. "We would not even be at Jorrvaskr, but we stopped at Breezehome and it was ransacked." She exhaled shakily and turned to Vilkas, eyes filled with worry. "The children and Lydia, all gone. What happened?"

Vilkas and Farkas shared a look before Farkas turned to Serana. "You may stay for now," he said to the vampire, "but I am watching you."

"I have no intention of staying here," Serana responded. "I need to go feed and the innkeeper indicated a group of bandits not far to the north. I will be back in the morning to collect Elise."

"I will go with you," Aela declared. All eyes turned to her in surprise and she added, "To insure you stick to only the bandits."

Elise nodded and the two women slipped out the door. Elise took quick steps to Vilkas, pausing a few feet away, an unsure look on her face. "Vilkas," she frowned. "Sofie and Alesan?"

Vilkas was not surprised when he caught the fear that laced her voice. He reached out and placed his hands on her shoulders. "They are fine," he assured her and she sagged in relief. "Come, you can see for yourself."

He led her down stairs and nodded good night to Farkas when he split off to his room. Vilkas and Elise continued into Kodlak's old rooms and Elise gasped when she saw Sofie and Alesan asleep in the bed. She hurried over to them and knelt next to the bed, fingers stroking across Sofie's hair as she leaned forward and nuzzled the girl, inhaling deeply. She moved to Alesan's side of the bed next and did the same thing with him before turning to Vilkas. He motioned her out of the room and the two sat at the table near the door. "Vilkas, what happened?"

"The Thalmor," Vilkas said quietly. "They ransacked Breezehome in the middle of the night. Lydia was able to fight them off and get the children to safety, but her wounds were too much." He trailed off and sighed. "She did not make it."

Elise's hands flew to her mouth and he could tell she was fighting back tears. "Why not send a courier out after me?" she hissed. "I would have been back here sooner."

"We did not want to risk the Thalmor intercepting anything," Vilkas answered. After several minutes he added, "We were not even sure what they were doing here." His question went unspoken but he could tell from the way Elise stiffened that she knew what he was asking.

"I cannot tell you yet," she sighed and leaned her elbows on the table, dropping her head in her hands. "Divines know I wish I could Vilkas, the timing is not right."

"By Talos girl," Vilkas snarled, "what are you involved in that you have the _Thalmor_ after you?"

She laughed sardonically. "Believe it or not I did nothing to provoke them. The Thalmor are after me because I am me." His brow wrinkled in confusion and she smiled tiredly. "The time is coming Vilkas. I will have to make my move soon, sooner now maybe that they have made theirs. I promise I will reveal everything to you before I do."

"You speak as if you are going to war with them," Vilkas responded.

"In a way I am," she answered. "Not by choice, but because, like everything else I have dealt with since I returned to Skyrim, I have to. It is 'in my blood'." She threw a wry grin his way and he smiled sadly.

He reached out and grasped one of her hands in both of his, rubbing his thumbs over the back of hers. "Promise me you will ask for help when you need it. You are not in this alone," he stated, looking at her seriously.

"I promise Vilkas," she vowed, squeezing his hand.

After several minutes he grudgingly released her hand and smirked. "Do I dare ask what you and that vampire are up to?" he asked.

She laughed out right. "We are on the hunt for a moth priest," she stated.

His eyebrows rose up nearly to his hairline. "A moth priest?" he repeated. "The ones from the Imperial City who study Elder Scrolls?" he asked.

"The very same," she said, nodding. "Serana has a scroll and we need somebody to help us figure it out. Without it we have no hope of stopping her father. We have done some snooping around and think there might be one in Dragonbridge. Since Whiterun was on the way I suggested stopping so I could check on the children. I did not expect to find." She stopped speaking and inhaled shakily, again dropping her face in her hands. "I was so scared Vilkas," she whispered tearfully.

He slid his chair over next to hers and wrapped an arm around her shoulders. "I would have contacted you to come back if something had happened to them," he murmured. "And after what happened we have agreed to let them stay here until you return," he added.

"Thank you," she said, wiping her eyes discreetly. "I will be able to sleep better knowing they are safe here with you." She paused and then grinned at him. "Well, as good as I can sleep being a werewolf traveling with a vampire." He laughed and squeezed her shoulder before letting her go. "Go to sleep," he said. "You look like you could use it."

She nodded and slipped into the bedroom, tugging off her armor and laying it on the dresser. She pulled a tunic on and then slid into the bed between Sofie and Alesan, sighing contentedly as she slipped off to sleep. Vilkas smiled and eased the door closed.

He was walking back out to his room when Aela and Serana came down the stairs. The two seemed to be laughing over a joke and he raised an eyebrow. "Nothing like bonding over the murder of scum," Aela commented, patting him on the shoulder. "That is Elise's room," she said to Serana pointing at the room across from hers. "I am sure she is in with the children so you can use her room if you want."

"Thank you," Serana said and moved into the room. Aela nodded at Vilkas and then disappeared into hers. Vilkas shook his head in amazement before retiring to his room.


	12. Chapter 12

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

"It is so odd," Serana murmured for what seemed like the hundredth time.

"You will get used to it," Elise responded. She hefted her pack up higher on her shoulder and sighed in relief when Whiterun appeared on the horizon. She and Serana had just finished clearing a group of bandits out of Valtheim Towers and she was in desperate need of some rest. Dealing with those bandits was not something they were planning on doing during the trip to Whiterun, but the bandits had attacked first.

"I have not felt weary in hundreds of years and you tell me that I will 'get used to it'. As if it is that easy to get used to," Serana grumbled.

Elise chuckled and reached over, relieving Serana of her pack. "Come on then you weak little human," she teased. "We should reach Whiterun by dusk, just in time to eat and fall into the beds at Jorrvaskr."

Serana harrumphed. "That is if the Companions will even let me in," she muttered, sourly.

Elise hid a smile and turned to lead the way down the hill towards the city. She had received a rare letter from Vilkas reporting in on the status of the Companions and at the bottom he had mentioned that Aela seemed quite taken with her vampiric acquaintance. He suspected the women's mutual bloodlust had formed a bond between them. Serana had not said much on the matter, but her nervousness about going back to Whiterun as a human instead of a vampire revealed how much she cared.

True to her word Elise pushed open the door to Whiterun just as the sun was slipping over the horizon. They were hailed by the guards and Elise nodded in acknowledgement. She paused at the steps to Breezehome, debating on if to enter or not, and then decided against it, instead turning to walk through the market and up to Jorrvaskr. She heard the thunk of an arrow hitting a target and headed around to the back of the building instead of inside.

She was surprised to see Sofie holding a small bow and firing at targets across the yard. "Look beyond your arrow tip and line up the shot," Aela coached from the side. Sofie did as instructed and cheered when the arrow landed just next to the middle of the target.

"Excellent work, Sofie," Elise said, walking over. The girl spun around and dropped her bow in order to throw her arms around her.

"Mama!" she cried excitedly. Elise knelt down and scooped her close in a hug. "I missed you so much."

"I missed you as well, young one. Where is your brother?" Sofie pulled out of the hug and pointed up toward the Skyforge.

"He is helping Eorlund," she said. "Eorlund told him that if he wanted his own sword he had to learn how to make it, just like I learned how to make my own bow and arrows."

Elise reached down and picked up the bow, examining it. "This is very nice. You made it?"

Sofie nodded excitedly. "Eorlund helped, but I did most of the work myself," she declared proudly.

Aela walked up behind her and hummed. "She left out the part where he caught her snooping around the forge because she was bored. He gave her the task of pounding out some arrowheads and this is what happened."

Elise stood, biting back a frown as she did. "I missed quite a bit while I was gone. I am sorry it was so long," she said.

"It is okay, Mama," Sofie said, patting her on the hand. "You are here now and that is what matters."

Elise grinned and hauled the girl up, spinning her around and then putting her back down. "Come on," she said as she took Sofie's hand, "Let us go get your brother. It has to be nearly dinner time."

Serana cleared her throat uncomfortably, drawing Elise's attention. "Oh Aela, will you take Serana inside for me? She is considering joining the Companions."

Aela looked between the two women in surprise but nodded just the same. Serana shot Elise a dirty look and Elise ignored her, intent on listening to Sofie talk about what had happened in the two months since she had last been to Jorrvaskr.

It was only after the children were fed and tucked into bed that Elise allowed herself to completely relax. She had changed into a tunic and breeches and was sitting at one of the smaller tables in the main hall nursing a bottle of mead. Serana sat across from her eyeing the bottle in front of her and all of the empty bottles on the table in distaste. "I do not know how you can stomach this stuff," she groused.

Elise giggled. "You get used to it," she said and Serana rolled her eyes.

"I am certainly having to 'get used' to quite a bit," she sighed.

Elise brought her hand down on top of the other woman's. "Do you regret it?"

Serana spun a bottle on the table with her free hand. The door opened and Aela and Farkas entered, Farkas with a small keg of ale under each arm. A smile graced Serana's lips and she turned back to Elise. "No, I do not regret it." Elise squeezed her hand and then pulled it back to grasp her mead and bring it up to her mouth for a long swallow.

"So what's this I hear about a possible new recruit?" Farkas asked, dropping a keg down next to the table and then pulling up a chair. Aela dragged one over as well and settled back into it.

Elise smiled and tipped her bottle towards Serana. "Serana was thinking about joining," she said.

Farkas looked her over and frowned. "You are no longer a vampire?" he asked.

Serana shook her head and looked down at the table, shifting uncomfortably. "After we dealt with my fa – Lord Harkon, I gave it a lot of thought." She sighed and glanced up at Aela then back down at the table. "Ultimately I decided that if I wanted to be able to mingle with normal society it would be best to find a cure."

Aela frowned. "We will not be able to hunt together again?" she inquired.

Elise smirked and leaned back. "Oh, nobody said that. You just cannot do it as a vampire and a werewolf."

"Wolf and human is not quite the same," Aela pointed out.

Elise raised her bottle to her lips pausing just before she took a drink. "Who said she would be a human?" she asked. She finished her bottle as the three around her responded with varying degrees of shock.

"Are you proposing we let her take the blood?" Farkas hissed.

Elise shrugged and glanced over at Aela who had become very still. "Why not?" she shot back.

"What would Vilkas think?" he asked.

She laughed and grabbed another bottle of mead, opening it up and taking a long drink. "Oh I know what Vilkas will think," she responded. "But it really matters what Serana thinks. It is her decision."

The Nord woman glanced between the three of them, mouth hanging open slightly in shock. "I do not," she paused and shook her head a bit. "I had not even considered it."

"Perhaps you should," Elise said, wagging her eyebrows at her.

Serana frowned. "What is wrong with you?" she asked.

Elise blinked and then looked at the empty bottles on the table. "I suspect I have had too much to drink," she commented. "This may be the most I have ever had."

"That would explain why you are considering something that Vilkas would never approve of," Farkas muttered.

"What would I not approve of?" Vilkas' voice startled them all and Elise looked up at him guiltily.

"We may have been talking about letting Serana join the Companions," she said.

"Why would I not approve of that?" he asked.

"Not just join the Companions," Elise amended, "but _join_ the Companions." She winked at him and waggled her eyebrows. He raised an eyebrow at her.

"Perhaps you should go to bed," he commented. "You are obviously not yourself."

"You are no fun," she groused, but rose obediently and stumbled towards the stairs. Vilkas followed, wrapping an arm around her waist to keep her from falling down the stairs when she reached them.

"How much have you had?" he asked as he steered her down the hall.

She shrugged. "Most of the bottles on the table were mine," she said. He turned towards her room and she pulled away from him, nearly falling over in the process. "Serana's staying in there. Better not sleep in there too or Aela will get jealous." She nodded, face looking incredibly serious. Vilkas sighed and turned towards the room the children were in. "Nope," she said. "Do not want to wake the children." She giggled and pulled away from him again to stumble over to the table in the hall. "Do not want to sleep anyway. Pull up a chair!" She waved vaguely in the direction of the chair across from her and then turned around. "Athis!" she called "Bring us some mead Brother!" The Dunmer raised an eyebrow at her and then looked at Vilkas who shrugged and nodded.

Vilkas settled into the chair across from her and studied her. "What is going on, Elise?" he asked.

The grin dropped from her lips and she frowned at him. "Nothing, just celebrating Serana's wanting to join the Companions," she responded.

"I do not believe you," Vilkas chided her. Athis appeared with a few bottles of mead and left them on the table without a word before disappearing back upstairs. Elise opened a bottle and finished it in a few quick swallows. Vilkas reached out and grabbed her hand to stop her from opening another. "Elise, what is wrong?" he asked, concern lacing his voice.

She looked at him and sighed, her entire body seeming to deflate as she did. "It never ends Vilkas. It just never ends."

"What are you talking about?" he asked. There was a loud noise and Njada and Ria tumbled down the stairs. Vilkas frowned and pulled Elise up, steering her into his room and closing the door so they could talk in private.

Elise sat down at the table and leaned against it, cradling her head in her hands. "Serana and I did it," she said. "She helped me get Auriel's bow and then I killed the evil vampire and saved Skyrim. Again." She folded her arms on the table and dropped her head onto them. "And now I get to rest for maybe a month and then I have to go do it all over again."

Vilkas pulled a chair over next to her and sat down. "What do you mean?"

"I mean I had to save Skyrim from Alduin. I had to save Skyrim from Lord Harkon. Now I have to go save Skyrim from the Thalmor. And in order to do so I am afraid I am going to have to side with somebody I would rather gut then ask for help," she explained without picking up her head.

Vilkas reached out, hand hovering over her back for several moments before he let it drop and slide soothingly against her. "You do not have to do these things." She glared at him from the side of her eye and he smirked. "I suppose you did have to defeat Alduin. You did not have to join the Dawnguard. You do not have to fight the Thalmor. Leave that fight with Ulfric Stormcloak."

She sighed again and sat up, leaning back in the chair and letting her head hang back so that she was staring at the ceiling, her hair falling away from her pointed ears. "I cannot," she said. "I would love for nothing more than to leave this in the hands of somebody else, not Ulfric necessarily, but somebody else." She chuckled sardonically and tilted her head to look at him. "I cannot," she whispered. "It is in my blood."

Vilkas frowned at her and smoothed a lock of hair away from her face. "I was teasing you when I said that. You do not have to carry the weight of Skyrim on your shoulders alone."

She smiled sadly and sat up, looking over at him seriously. "I have something I need to ask you Vilkas. Two things, actually. One I will ask you now and the other after you have had time to read these." She reached into her pouch and pulled out two small and well-worn books. He accepted them and started to open the first one but her hand atop of his stopped him. "Not right now. Not while I am here." She licked her lips and looked up at him. "The first question is will you accompany me to Ysgramor's Tomb to purify myself, no matter what you read in these books?"

"Of course," he answered.

"Do you swear it?" she asked.

He looked confused but stated, "I swear it."

She sagged in relief and smiled. "I am going to leave and check on Heljarchen Hall," she said, rising from her seat. "I will be leaving early tomorrow and will return in two weeks' time. At that point we can go to Ysgramor's Tomb, and I will ask you my second question."

Vilkas frowned hard and reached out to grab her hand. "Elise, please, what is it? What is going on?"

"I will tell you Vilkas, everything, but you must read those first," she pleaded.

He gripped the two books tightly in his hand. "Very well," he responded. "In two weeks' time?"

"In two weeks' time," she confirmed and then slipped out of his room.


	13. Chapter 13

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

_I do have to admit it has been awhile since I played the older Elder Scrolls games, so my apologies for any inconsistencies._

Vilkas paced back and forth at the top of the steps to Jorrvaskr. The sun was gradually working its way down towards setting and still there was no sign of Elise. He held in his hand the two books she had left him. One, her personal journal from the time she had left Skyrim until she had returned and the second one a Thalmor Dossier on her. How she had come to obtain that book he was not sure he wanted to know and the information inside had sent him reeling.

"Excuse me!" He turned and saw a courier running up the steps. "Have a message for you, your eyes only." He handed over the letter and then disappeared before Vilkas could say anything in response. He broke the wax seal and instantly recognized Elise's handwriting.

_Vilkas,_

_I am sorry for not being there when I said I would. I admit that I am afraid to face you knowing that you have read those books and that you now know more about me than anybody else in all of Tamriel. If you can forgive me for what is in there, if you can forgive me for being such a coward, meet me at Ysgramor's Tomb. If you do not arrive I will understand and you will never hear directly from me again._

_I pray to Mara that you find it in your heart to forgive me and that I will see you soon._

_Elise_

Vilkas rubbed a hand over his face and stuffed the letter and two books into the small pouch on his hip. He was disappointed that she did not come but not really surprised. He would have a hard time as well if he were in her position. Mind made up he moved into Jorrvaskr to retrieve a witch's head from where he knew Elise had them stashed and packed for his trip north.

Elise was sitting at the base of Ysgramor's statue fiddling with one of her arrows when he walked in. "I was not sure you would come," she said quietly as he neared. She looked up at him, a hopeful look in her eyes.

He swallowed and looked down at the floor. "I promised I would help you," he said gruffly. He glanced up in time to see the light in her eyes die and she nodded resignedly.

"Thank you," she murmured. "I know I do not deserve your assistance and I greatly appreciate it." She pushed herself up and led the way down to the Flame of the Harbinger. She was silent the entire trip, barely making a sound as they killed her beast spirit. Once the spirit was defeated she kept her eyes on the flame in the center of the room.

Vilkas rubbed the back of his neck as he watched her stand there and he realized how alone she was in the world. "Is it true?" he asked. "What was in those books?"

She stiffened and tilted her head slightly in his direction. "Yes," she responded. She turned and walked over to the step at the edge of the room to sit down and continued staring at the flame as she talked. "I was very young when my father and I moved to Skyrim. I vaguely remember the first time I saw snow as we traveled across the land. Eventually we settled in Ivarstead where he made a living hunting and selling the meat to travelers and at the inn. I grew up mostly happy, though I was essentially an outcast until the day Ulfric Stormcloak came to town on his way to High Hrothgar." She paused and shifted uncomfortably.

"I will admit I was smitten when I first met him and for a time, I thought perhaps he returned my feelings. We would spend a lot of free time together when he passed through town and grew to be good friends. Then he went to war." She shook her head and looked down at her hands. "And my father grew ill."

She sighed deeply and looked over at him for a moment before turning back to the flame. "I had seen eighteen years when Father became ill. He had taught me all he could about keeping a house and hunting. I have never figured out why, but before he died he felt that he needed to divulge his darkest secret. Maybe he wanted to clear his conscience before he passed, I do not know. Either way he told me that my mother was not dead like I believed. He said that he had taken me without her knowledge and escaped to Skyrim to protect me." Her fingers were twisted around each other and she swallowed hard and closed her eyes.

"I did not believe him. I yelled at him. Talos help me the last thing I said to him before he died was that I could not believe he would be so terrible a father to steal me away from my mother." He could see the tears hovering on her eyelashes as she continued. "I left then. I took all the money I had and traveled to Valenwood, determined to find my mother." She opened her eyes and laughed darkly. "Oh I found her. She was essentially a noble in Valenwood, practically royalty and she was thrilled to see me. I was so happy at first. I had my mother and she spent time dressing me nicely and teaching me all the things I had not been able to learn growing up a poor girl with only a father. It was all going well until the Thalmor arrived."

She glanced over where he stood, not having moved an inch since she started talking. "They were polite at first. Nice even. Until I refused to go with them back to Summerset Isle. My mother tried to convince me to go with them, but something felt off about it. I happened to be sneaking around in the hallway one evening and overheard my mother and the Thalmor agent discussing my kidnapping. My own mother."

She rubbed her eyes and then continued. "I escaped that night, but I did not expect my mother to be on guard outside my room." She gritted her teeth and looked at the floor. "I knew that going with the Thalmor would be bad news for me and being kidnapped by them would be even worse. So I did what I had to do to escape. She could have survived, it was not a fatal wound, merely meant to incapacitate. How was I to know that the Thalmor would finish her off for her inability to keep me there?"

He glanced away and could feel her eyes on him as he stood there listening to her. "I did not know until long after my escape why the Thalmor were interested in me and at the time I did not care, I was focused on getting _away_. It was a long and hard trip to return to Skyrim and then to walk right into the Imperial ambush. It was terrible. Worse yet was to sit in that wagon right next to Ulfric and he did not even recognize me. Sure I was older and had a few scars but I had not changed that much."

She sighed and looked down at the floor. "And you know the rest of the story from there."

"Why you?" he asked, looking back over at her. "Why are the Thalmor after you?"

"I had no idea until I infiltrated the Thalmor Embassy and found the Dossier. After that I dove into the library at the College of Winterhold and called in favors from every member of the Thieves' Guild to verify the information I had found and amazingly it was all correct. During every single world changing event that has happened on Tamriel, one of my female relatives has been at the center of it all.

"It was a Bosmer woman named Vanisia who saved Emperor Uriel Septim IV with the Staff of Chaos and was named Eternal Champion of Arena. It was a Bosmer woman named Merri who navigated the Mantellan Crux and released the heart of Great Numidium and gave the Emperor the power to restore the Empire to Tamriel. It was a Bosmer woman named Seria who defeated Dagoth Ur and put down the Ash Vampires in Morrowind. It was a Bosmer woman named Caseria who ended the Oblivion Crisis. And each one was a direct ancestor of mine.

"My mother knew; one of my thieves managed to retrieve her journal from Valenwood for me. Apparently the information was passed from mother to daughter for years. My mother though, she was the one who thought that trading her information to the Thalmor would earn her a better life. And it did, for a time. I do not know how he managed to find out, but at some point my father discovered my mother's intention to turn me over to the Thalmor and that was when he took me and fled to Skyrim." She was talking quietly now, barely a murmur above the flame that crackled in the middle of the room. Still Vilkas did not move towards her, instead he focused completely on listening to her.

"The ambush that captured Ulfric and his Stormcloaks? It was really meant for me." She chuckled darkly. "Ulfric may think he is so high and mighty that the Thalmor would focus on capturing and killing him, but he would be wrong. The Thalmor set up that ambush in order to capture and destroy me, ending my bloodline and keeping any other 'world saviors' from being born. I do not think they planned on Alduin to not only spoil their fun but reveal that I was the next hero."

"And now you think you must fight the Thalmor and defeat them?" Vilkas asked.

Elise frowned and shook her head. "No, I must fight them and remove them from Skyrim. I do not believe I am to be responsible for saving all of Tamriel from the Thalmor, just Skyrim. Perhaps one of my descendants will be responsible for their ultimate demise."

"So I assume you will be off to join the Stormcloaks and win their war for them?" he snarled.

"Not if I can help it." She looked up at him and he could see the hope starting to form in her eyes again. "I have no intention of joining the Stormcloaks unless it is on my terms and I doubt that Ulfric will agree to them. Not without some convincing at least."

"Do I dare ask how you intend to defeat the Thalmor without the Stormcloaks?" Vilkas inquired.

Elise laughed a bit and smiled. "Probably not yet."

"Always with the secrets," Vilkas retorted.

The smile faded slightly and she shrugged one shoulder, looking away. "I have had very few people in my life that I could trust with all of me. Secrets are the way I live."

Vilkas finally moved, walking over to crouch down in front of her. "You can trust me," he said.

"Can I?" she asked softly.

He reached up and tucked a strand of hair behind her ear, pausing to stroke the lobe from tip down. She shivered and her eyes fell partially closed. "Vilkas," she breathed.

He leaned forward and his lips found hers, pressing a gentle kiss to them until she reached up and slipped her hands around his shoulders and yanked him closer. He growled in his throat as the kiss became more passionate and he was forced to pull away lest he push her to the ground and take her right there in the middle of the tomb.

"Does that mean you forgive me for what I have done?" she asked hesitantly.

He laughed and stood, holding a hand down to help her up also. "As far as I can tell, there is nothing to forgive," he assured her. She smiled widely and threw her arms around him in a hug.

Vilkas squeezed her to him and then released her and took a step back. "Come along, you can tell me about how you intend to take over Skyrim on our way back to Jorrvaskr." He reached down to take her hand and she paused.

"I have one other question first," she said hesitantly. Vilkas waited patiently while she rooted around in her pack and eventually found what she was seeking. She turned to him with the item grasped in her hands and then held it out, eyes downcast.

"An Amulet of Mara?" he asked, stunned.

She shrugged one shoulder, eyes still not looking up at him. "I know I am supposed to wear it and if you express interest we can go from there but after all that we have been through I did not want to wear it and risk anybody else thinking it was for them."

Vilkas reached down and tilted her head up to look at him. A small smile graced his lips and he leaned towards her. "I would be honored to marry you," he murmured. "You are an amazing woman."

"Even though I am involved with mages, thieves, and assassins?" Her voice was teasing, but he could hear the concern behind it.

He chuckled. "As long as I do not have to participate or catch you doing any of it then I can live with it," he responded. "You are worth it." He barely caught sight of the flush that stained her cheeks as he closed the minute space between them and kissed her deeply. When they finally separated she was flushed and panting and he preened internally at leaving her breathless.

"To Jorrvaskr then to collect what we need and after to Riften?" she asked.

He slipped an arm around her waist and tugged her flush against him. "That sounds perfect. Do not think you have distracted me from wanting to know about how you intend to take over Skyrim though."

"I would not dream of keeping it from you Vilkas. Not now," she responded. He released her and reached down to take her hand and together they made their way out of the tomb.

_AN: Finally! I was beginning to wonder if these two were ever going to get their acts together._


	14. Chapter 14

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

_Thank you all so much for the lovely reviews! They make my day._

_Vilkas is possibly a bit OC in this, but I justify it with the fact that he is alone with Elise and we are all a bit different when alone with our significant other._

Elise looked up as the door opened and Serana entered the room. "Stop that!" the woman hissed, coming over to pull the partially destroyed bouquet from Elise's hands where she had been absently tugging it apart from nerves.

"Sorry," the Bosmer woman murmured. "I am just uncomfortable and nervous."

"But you look amazing," Serana protested. Elise glanced over at the mirror that was set up in the small room reserved for the brides at the Temple of Mara in Riften. She wore an elegant dress in light green that was cut low in the front, displaying a jagged scar across her collar bone that she had earned during her time with the Dawnguard and dipped even lower in the back, showing off the scars she had received fighting Alduin. She wore a crown of braided flowers in her hair, simple dark green slippers on her feet, and the wolf's head necklace was cradled tastefully against her chest.

Elise looked back at Serana. "I do look amazing," she admitted, "but I do not look like myself." Serana had insisted that she take off her weapons and she felt naked without them. She always had at least a dagger readily available, even when she slept or bathed.

Serana flipped her hand in a dismissive gesture. "No bride looks like herself on their wedding day. I think there is a rule about it somewhere." The two women laughed and Elise sighed as she felt herself relax minutely.

A few moments later there was a knock on the door and she stiffened up again. "You in there lass?" a rough voice echoed through the door and Elise could not help the smile on her face as she tugged it open.

"Bryn," she said, and wrapped her arms around the man who had entered. Serana raised her eyebrows at the display of affection.

The newcomer stepped out of the embrace and held onto her shoulders eyes moving up and down as he took in her attire. "Well lass, I am interested to know how you plan to kill dragons wearing that," he quipped and she giggled, hitting him on the arm. "Or sneak into any houses for that matter. Dresses are awful clumsy things to move in."

"Oh, and how would you know that Bryn?" Elise asked, eyes alight with happiness.

"You just do not worry about that young lady," he responded.

Serana cleared her throat and Elise looked at her, laughing again when she saw the concerned look on the woman's face. "Serana," Elise said, "this is Brynjolf. He is a member of the Thieves' Guild and my surrogate brother. Bryn, this is Serana, she is a member of the Companions." She turned back to him as he tilted his head in greeting to Serana. "Is Eshne here?" Elise asked.

Brynjolf smiled, "Aye lass, she would not miss this for the world. Of course, after this she will be pestering me to do the same thing. I believe I saw her talking to Maramal earlier." He frowned and shuddered.

"Good," Elise said, "It is about time she made an honest man out of you." Brynjolf smirked and then reached out, rubbed her head, sending her flower crown askew and messing up her hair. "Bryn!" Elise protested.

He shrugged good-naturedly and stepped back, bowing to both of them. "I considered threatening the groom that if he hurt you I would hurt him, only then I remembered who you were and anything I could do to him would pale in comparison to what you can do to him." Both women laughed and Brynjolf pecked Elise on the cheek. "May Mara smile upon your marriage," he said and then grinned wickedly, "And Dibella on your honeymoon." Elise gasped and her cheeks flared red in embarrassment as he walked away laughing.

"Thieves' Guild?" Serana questioned, starting to close the door behind him.

"You do not know the half of it," Elise sighed. She watched as the door was pushed back against Serana and a small girl stepped inside. Serana gasped and threw herself between Elise and the girl, instantly on guard. "Serana," Elise said. "Calm down."

"No," Serana hissed, "this is obviously somebody coming to exact revenge after the death of Lord Harkon and you are unarmed."

The girl raised one eyebrow at the other woman and Elise snickered. "Serana, meet Babette, the eldest member of the Dark Brotherhood. Babette, this is Serana. Serana, Babette is a friend."

"I am not staying long," Babette assured her. "Not with this group, I saw the Dawnguard members out there." She paused and shuddered and then smiled warmly at Elise. "I could not let my Sister get married without congratulating her though." Elise stepped forward and knelt, wrapping the petite vampire in a tight hug. "Promise you will come visit soon," Babette said, "We have not hunted together for a long while."

"I will," Elise vowed. "I need to check on Cicero, Nazir, and Kirsikka anyway. Unless they came?" she sounded hopeful and sighed when Babette shook her head.

"Too many goody-goodies," Babette commented. "They knew I could slip in and out unnoticed." She reached up and fixed the flower crown, smoothing down Elise's hair.

"Thank you Babette. Please tell them I will visit soon." She nodded and then slipped out the door.

"Any other surprise guests I should be expecting?" Serana muttered, pushing the door closed.

Elise laughed and shook her head. "I doubt anybody from the College will want to come back here. Babette and Brynjolf though, they are family. Much like you." The two embraced for several minutes and Serana sniffled.

"Crying," she muttered. "Years and years without it and now, crying! Look what you are doing to me." A knock on the door startled them both and Serana opened it and then turned to Elise. "Ready?"

"As I will ever be," she responded.

After the wedding most of the group adjourned to Honeyside to celebrate. By the time the new couple finally escaped it was nearly midnight and both were tired. Elise threw a half-wave to Keerava as they made their way upstairs to their room at The Bee and The Barb. "Finally," Vilkas sighed, closing and locking the door before pulling her tight against him in a deep kiss. Elise moaned and her hands slid up his chest and into his hair. He moved his lips away from hers and began to kiss down her neck, nipping and sucking as he did.

"Vilkas," she sighed and he hummed against her throat. "Vilkas you never did tell me," she trailed off into another moan as he nibbled on her earlobe.

"Tell you what Love?" he murmured.

"Why you were so mean to me," she finished. She felt him freeze and pull back to look at her.

"You want to have this discussion now?" he asked, sounding almost pained.

"I know it is not the best time, but no time has seemed like a good time and we have not exactly had any time alone together recently and if I did not ask now I probably never would," Elise rambled. "And it would sit there in the back of my mind and eat at my thoughts until finally it festered over and became something terrible. You were nice to me once before and then became so cruel and I need to know why, please Vilkas."

He sighed and stepped away from her, dropping to sit on the bed. "Do you want the long version or the short version?" he asked.

She shrugged one shoulder. "I matters not, as long as it is the truth."

He rubbed one hand over his face and looked down at the floor. "Simply put, I was angry and afraid." Elise walked over and sat next to him, reaching out to take his hand. He let her, but kept his eyes on the ground. "You first came to Kodlak, proud as you please, so sure of your entry to the Companions. And the way Kodlak instantly trusted you. At the time I did not understand why he trusted you, I did not know what he knew, and oh it irritated me. I had spent my life looking up to that man and here you were, some stranger swooping in and earning his faith without trying. It filled me with rage."

"Vilkas," she started, but quieted when he squeezed her hand.

"And Farkas was quickly taken with you. I had no idea why that made me mad, not for a long time. I blamed it on your affiliations; that it was because you were not good enough for him. I realized later I was jealous. Jealous of how quickly you had earned his love, my brother! He was mine, my kin. Who were you to come in and take his affection?" He shook his head, "And who was he to take yours? I came to realize later, much later, that I wanted your affection. I wanted your attention. The relief I felt when you brought Jordis to meet him was not because my brother was safe from you like I told myself, but because I wanted you."

He looked up at her then and leaned forward, closing his eyes and resting his forehead against hers. "Then we had that month before Alduin. That month of friendship, of bonding, of learning, of seeing passed the surface. Up until recently that month was the best time of my life." His voice dropped and she squeezed his hand. When he spoke again it was laced with pain, "And you came back. I was so happy when you came back."

"Could have fooled me," she muttered and he chuckled.

"I know," he said. "When I fell asleep that day and then woke with your fingers in my hair it scared me. I had been relaxed; I had let my guard down completely. I have never, _ever_ been completely at ease. Not for as long as I could remember, not even with Kodlak or Farkas. It scared me. It did not just scare me, it _terrified_ me to be that comfortable with somebody. I realized then that you could be bad for me. With my guard down I could slip up, something could happen to one of my Shield-Siblings, something could happen to _you_ and, Talos help me, if something happened to you because of me it would _kill me_. So I pushed you away. I pushed and pushed because I thought if I pushed enough you would leave, or at least fire back at me with as much venom. You never did though. You just got this look." He groaned and it sounded agonizing. "You got this look like I was killing you and it was almost my undoing."

He inhaled shakily and she could see tears glistening on his eyelashes. She shifted and kissed both of his closed eyes, kissing the salty liquid away. "Then the Silver Hand attacked, and _you were not there._ I was so angry, angry with them, angry with myself, and so, so angry with you. You are the Dragonborn, you had felled the most powerful dragon in Tamriel, surely if you had been there you could have taken out a few puny humans, but you were _not there_. It did not matter to me that you were helping Kodlak to find peace; all that I could focus on was that Kodlak was dead and you had not been around to help prevent it.

He inhaled shakily and turned, releasing her hand to reach up and rub his eyes. He laughed a bit and looked at her from the side of his eyes. "Believe it or not it was my forcing you to come with me that started to bring me around," he admitted. "You were beautiful in your rage as you took out the Silver Hand. I could see it all over you as you felled them with arrow and dagger, the hatred you had for them and the revenge you craved." He leaned back and looked her over. "As beautiful as you are now, you are more beautiful in the heat of battle," he said, reaching up to cradle her chin and slide his thumb against her cheek. "Fire and rage and strength all wrapped up in an amazing little package."

She smiled and leaned into his touch. "Stop distracting me, flatterer."

He let his hand drop and took hers again. "Then I read Kodlak's journal. I was shocked. All the things he had put in there. The visions he had. It made me realize that I needed to reconsider what I was doing. That some things in life were worth the risk." He squeezed her hand. "And then I met your family. I had never thought you were anything but what the stories said. To see you in that instance, so relaxed, so _normal_, suddenly you were no longer this heroic figure of legend and were just this woman who wanted to love and be loved, who wanted to raise her children in a world safe for them and it was incredibly easy for me to insert myself into that picture. I could see myself teaching Alesan how to fight with a two-handed sword and Sofie how to protect herself. I could see us all relaxing around a fire, the children playing and you and me reading or working our armor and weapons. _Talos how I wanted that_." He released her hand and ran both of his hands through his hair.

"I did not know how you would feel. If you would accept me back after I had been so callous, so cruel." He gave her a tilted smile and shook his head. "Lucky for me you are as forgiving as Mara. When you trusted me with your history, with a piece of you that nobody else had, I knew then that it did not matter. Nothing from before mattered. All that was important was that there was this amazing, strong, and gorgeous woman who was addled enough to want me and by the Nine I was not going to let her get away from me again."

"I am eternally grateful that you came to your senses," Elise murmured. She maneuvered around, adjusting her dress so that she was kneeling on the bed next to him. "I have always known Vilkas," she said, reaching out to hold his face between her hands, eyes locking with his. "I have always known it was you. From the first time I saw you sitting there with Kodlak, so cynical, so leery of me; I knew there would never be another for me, not in all of Tamriel." She slid one hand down onto his shoulder. "Mara knows you made it difficult for me, but no matter what you did, my heart could not let you go and now, it is the happiest heart in Skyrim."

Vilkas smiled and lifted his hands to her waist, turning more to face her. "Then mine is a close second," he murmured before pulling her to him in a deep kiss. After several minutes he pulled away and leered at her. "Now, how about we get on with our wedding night?" he inquired.

She grinned widely and reached up to run her hand down his chest. "I thought you would never ask," she said.


	15. Chapter 15

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

_Again, thank you to everybody who has reviewed/favorite/followed this story, it really has made it that much more of a pleasure to work on!_

_This was an interesting chapter. It always irritated me the side that Balgruuf chose. Why do all these men make such dumb decisions?_

Elise slipped out the back door of Jorrvaskr and eased into one of the chairs. She and Vilkas had returned from their three week honeymoon the day before and walked into a celebration on their behalf. It had started at Jorrvaskr with just the Companions and had eventually spilled into the streets of Whiterun and soon everybody in the town was celebrating. Elise thought she had even spied Proventus, Farengar, and Irileth amongst the group. At the thought of them her eyes turned to Dragonsreach. She would be calling on the Jarl later that day in the hopes he would support her plan but before she approached him she had promised Vilkas to discuss the matter with the rest of the Circle first.

As if summoned by her thoughts the door creaked open and her husband walked out. "Good morning Love," he murmured, bending down to kiss her deeply. She smiled against his lips, thoroughly enjoying herself.

"Good morning," she responded breathlessly when he pulled away. He sat across from her and she smirked. "If you keep that up we may need to take a few more weeks for our honeymoon," she teased.

He puffed up at her comment and her cheeks flushed at the look in his eyes. They had spent the majority of their honeymoon in their room at the inn, specifically in the bed and on the floor and against the wall and once, in an incredibly daring act, in the stairwell of the inn. "As tempting as that is," he purred, "I rather think the rest of the Circle would not appreciate it."

"What would we not appreciate?" Farkas asked as he dropped a platter of food on the table and pulled up a chair. He settled into it and looked between Elise's pink face and Vilkas' leer and shook his head. "Never mind, I do not want to know." The newlyweds laughed and Elise helped herself to some of his food, much to his dismay.

It was only minutes later when Aela and Serana joined them out on the porch, sitting at a table nearby. Elise had been only mildly surprised to learn that while she and Vilkas were gone the two women had begun sharing a room and Serana had joined Aela in sharing the blood. It seemed that the two of them were gone several nights together to hunt.

"Ma!" She turned to see Alesan running down from the forge towards her. He had a new sword strapped to his waist and he skidded to a stop in front of her. "Ma, look, it's finished!" He unsheathed the weapon, nearly striking Farkas in the process and held it up proudly. Elise made a big deal of inspecting it and then handed it back to him.

"It looks wonderful Alesan," she praised. "Almost as good as Vilkas'." She grinned at her husband and he rolled his eyes.

"Thanks Ma!" He took the sword and carefully slid it back into the scabbard before bouncing over to Vilkas. "Can you give me some lessons today? Can you Pa?" Elise smiled at the endearment. The two children had taken to Vilkas quickly, much to his surprise.

Vilkas ruffled Alesan's hair. "Later today Son," he said. "Your mother and I need to have an important meeting with the rest of the Circle."

"Okay. I cannot wait to show this to Braith," Alesan crowed and took off down the side of the building.

"You do not use that unless there is an adult helping you!" Elise called after him. She sighed and settled back into the chair, knowing good and well that he would not listen to her.

"Papa!" Sofie ran out and climbed up onto Vilkas lap, making herself at home. "Papa can I have some money? Lucia's birthday is coming up and Mila and I want to buy her something really nice since she has no Mama or Papa to buy her anything. Please?"

"Of course Sofie," he said gently and then reached down and unfastened his money pouch and handed it to her. "Just bring me some change alright?"

"Thanks Papa! You are the best!" she cried and then took off running down to the market.

Elise and Farkas were grinning at him and he flushed. "What?" he asked.

Elise shook her head. "She has you wrapped around her little finger already." Vilkas shrugged but did not deny it.

"How are the two lovebirds this morning?" Serana asked as she and Aela moved to join them.

"Glad to be home," Elise sighed and Vilkas nodded in agreement.

"What is this we heard about a meeting?" Aela asked.

Elise exhaled slowly. "You are all aware of the civil war that is going on." She paused while they all nodded. "Well I intend to finish it. The people of Skyrim cannot live their lives in fear that their homes will be destroyed by an invading army. This squabble between Ulfric and Tullius has gone on long enough."

"Whose side will you join?" Farkas asked.

Elise opened her mouth and closed it a few times before finally deciding on her words. "I have thought about it quite a bit and decided that it would be best to join Ulfric's side. For several reasons, but mostly because I agree that Skyrim should be free of the Thalmor." She paused and looked between them all. "However I will join him on my own terms and if he does not agree to them, then I will march on him and Tullius both."

Aela choked on the swallow of cider she had just taken. "What?" she gasped out.

Elise shifted and Vilkas nodded to her in encouragement. "It is no secret that I am involved with thieves, mages, and assasins," she said. "What you do not know is that I am the Guildmaster of the Thieves' Guild, the Arch Mage of Winterhold, and the Listener of the Dark Brotherhood."

"How did you manage to find time to become the Harbinger of the Companions?" Serana asked.

Elise chuckled. "I have a second in command at each headquarters to run things for me while I am away. A bit like what Vilkas does here." Vilkas frowned at the comparison but did not comment. "On top of that I am highly respected by the Dawnguard and Thane in all of the Holds of Skyrim. If Ulfric does not agree to my terms then I will rally an army of my own and march against he and Tullius. The two hate each other enough that I would not have to worry about them joining together and would easily be able to take them both down."

"You seem to forget that the Stormcloaks and Imperials both have huge armies behind them," Aela pointed out.

"That may be true," Elise agreed, "but how many will still follow when they find out the Dragonborn leads an army against both? Tullius and Ulfric have been dancing around each other and do not care about the people of Skyrim and how their war affects them. I will move to end this war and allow the people to live in peace!" She took a swallow of cider and added, "Plus, I have two dragons at my call and the heroes of Sovngarde. They will not stand a chance."

"You said that this is only if Ulfric does not agree to your terms," Serana commented.

Elise nodded. "That is true. I would rather not have to lead an army and then lead the country after the war is over. That is better left to nobles. If Ulfric will agree then I will help him win."

"What are the terms?" Farkas asked.

Elise leaned forward. She and Vilkas had bickered back and forth about which terms she should leave and which she should forget before finally settling on something that they felt the Jarl of Windhelm would agree to. "He must demonstrate that he is not the racist that he seems to be. If he is to be the High King then he must be willing to accept and aid all those who live in Skyrim, not just the Nords. Further, he must agree to try and work with Balgruuf."

"You know that there is a good chance that Balgruuf will not want to work with him," Aela pointed out.

Elise sighed. "I know. I have an appointment with the Jarl this evening to discuss the matter with him. I can only hope that he will agree to work with Ulfric. If not then Ulfric must swear that Jorrvaskr will be safe during his attack. Then we can at least guarantee the safety of the innocents if they are in here."

"Why are you divulging this to us?" Farkas asked.

"I cannot go to Ulfric and threaten him with the might of the Companions if they are not willing to fight with me," Elise explained. "In the two weeks I spent at Heljarchen Hall I met with all of the factions. They have all agreed to follow me on this fight if needed. They will not necessarily aid Ulfric in his quest, but they will not hinder him either." She looked up at the group around the table. "What say you Shield Siblings?"

"I do not know about the rest of you, but I would love to knock a few Thalmor heads in," Farkas said.

Aela and Serana shared a look and Serana said, "I have told you before that I will follow you anywhere you need me."

Aela nodded. "I too will follow you. I do not prefer either side in the war, but you are my Harbinger, and more importantly my Shield Sister. I will stand with you."

"Thank you all," Elise gushed. "I do appreciate it."

"Come on then," Serana said and rose. "We need to get you ready for a meeting with the Jarl. There is no way I am letting you go up there looking like that."

Elise's eyebrows rose in shock but she allowed herself to be led away as the other three laughed.

It was several hours later when Serana finally allowed Elise to see Vilkas. He walked into their room and stopped at the sight of her. "What?" she asked, shifting uncomfortably under his gaze.

"By the Nine," he breathed, walking up to slide his hands against her waist. She had on a dark green dress that was cut high in front and dipped low in the back, leaving a good portion of her skin bare and showing off the scars from Alduin. Her hair was freshly trimmed and intricately styled with clips and pins to keep it away from her face. She had delicate earrings dripping from each ear and a matching necklace rested against her chest. There were small gold slippers on her feet and she looked every part the noble woman. "You look amazing," he murmured against her throat before tracing kisses along it. "Almost as good as our wedding day."

Elise moaned and tilted her head, giving him better access. "Serana said if I was meeting with a Jarl I should look like a noble woman, not a warrior woman."

Vilkas growled and backed her up against the wall. "I have half a mind to keep you here and show you just how _noble_ you look." Elise moaned again, fingers threading into his hair as he sucked and nibbled on her neck. She knew he was marking her, staking his claim before she went to see Balgruuf, but she could not bring herself to care and a part of her preened at the jealousy she could pull from this man, her husband.

The door opened and startled them both and Vilkas reluctantly pulled up to glare at Serana. "Enough of that you two," she scolded them. "I do not have time to redress her after you ravish her." Vilkas frowned at Serana but released Elise and Serana rolled her eyes. "I do not think you needed to mark her. Maybe I can find something to cover it up." She turned to exit the room and Elise stopped her.

"It is fine," she said. "I like it." She winked at Vilkas, her face flush with arousal and he groaned.

"Get out of here now or I will never let you leave," he grumbled. She laughed and pecked him on the cheek before sashaying out of the room. Aela and Farkas were at the top of the stairs when she reached the main floor and Farkas let out a whistle.

"Shut it you," she said before he could even start. "Or I will tell Jordis," she threatened. Farkas raised his hands in defeat but continued to smirk at her.

Elise moved to the exit and paused to turn back to them. "One thing," she murmured, moving back toward the two of them and dropping her voice. "If this does not go well and I am forced to run, meet me at Heljarchen Hall. And for Talos' sake, bring my weapons and armor with you."

Farkas grabbed her wrist. "What do you mean if you are forced to run?" he asked.

Elise shrugged. "It is always a good idea to have a backup plan," she stated. Aela nodded and then pushed her towards the door.

An hour later found her sitting across from Balgruuf on the Great Porch sharing an uncomfortable meal. "To what do I owe the pleasure of your presence, Dragonborn?" Balgruuf asked around the bites of his dinner. "Surely it is not because you missed me."

Elise blushed and looked down at her plate. "A Thane cannot dine with her Jarl?" she shot back, raising challenging eyes to him.

"Please, call me Balgruuf," he instructed her.

"Then you must call me Elise. I prefer it over Dragonborn any day," she said, wrinkling her nose in disgust.

"Very well. To what do I owe the pleasure of your company, Elise? It used to be that not a week could go by without you stopping at the castle, but it has been ages since your presence has graced my home; since about the time I allowed you to use my castle to catch a dragon." His voice had an acidic tone to it and she frowned but stated her case anyway.

"I wish to see the civil war brought to an end," she stated, ignoring his other comments. He looked at her expectantly. "You agree that it has gone on too long?" she asked. At his nod she continued. "I have very little love for the Empire and none at all for the Thalmor. I intend to offer aid to Ulfric, provided he agrees to a set of conditions," she explained.

He took a deep drink of wine and looked at her. "What conditions are those?" he inquired.

She shifted and cut her eyes away from him. "There are a few, the one that concerns you is that he must agree to work with you," she stated and then dared to look at him. His face was stoic, free of emotions as he considered her words.

"And if I do not wish to work with him?" he questioned softly.

"Hence the reason for my visit," she responded.

"I see," he said and turned his attention back to his dinner. She did the same, managing to force down a few bites around the uncomfortable feeling in her stomach. "And if he does not agree?" Balgruuf asked after several minutes. "Will you throw your support behind the Empire just to end the war?"

She inhaled deeply and then answered, "No. Like I said, I have little love for the Empire. If Ulfric does not agree I intend to destroy them both."

Balgruuf did not seem shocked by her words, simply raised an eyebrow in question. "And how do you plan to do that?" he asked.

She grinned, looking almost wolf-like. "I have my ways," she stated.

He leaned back in his chair and rested his hands on his stomach. "Why bother with Ulfric at all then? Why not just march against them both now?"

"I have no desire to run Skyrim and I would need to, the people would expect me to, after defeating them both. If Ulfric will concede to my demands then he can have his country," she explained.

"There is another solution," Balgruuf stated, leaning forward when he saw he had her undivided attention. "You could marry a Jarl," he finished. "After you won the war then he could lead Skyrim."

Elise blinked in surprise, a spike of fear racing through her gut. "Balgruuf, I am already wed. Surely you did not miss the celebration just last night?" she murmured.

Balgruuf rose from the table and circled around to hover over her. "Of course I had heard you tied yourself to that dog in the Companions." He leaned in close, placing one hand on each arm of her chair and trapping her there. "I also know you are involved with the Dark Brotherhood. One word from you and he will no longer be a problem." He reached up and his fingers brushed against the mark Vilkas had left on her skin. "Only an uncouth child would mark a woman as lovely as you in a manner such as this. You deserve better."

Elise was mentally berating herself for not bringing a dagger with her like she had planned; instead listening to Serana when she said it would give the wrong impression. Now here she was trapped by the man and unable to fight back without seriously injuring or killing him. "You overstep your bounds," she warned him.

He laughed. "You are unarmed. What will you do to me, use your Thu'um and risk killing me? And who would believe you when you told them this tale?" His fingers traced down her neck and shoulder, dipping dangerously close to her chest. Her arm shot up and she grabbed his wrist, stopping him.

"You do realize I could blow you off the side of this balcony," she snarled.

"And spend the rest of your life running from my guards," he responded and then bent down to force his lips against hers. She reached up and pushed him away, nearly falling back out of the chair as she did. She rose and glanced towards the door to the palace but the edge of the balcony was closer and she ran towards it as he stalked after her.

She stopped at the edge and turned to face him, inhaling deeply. "One last chance Balgruuf," she stated. "Will you stand with me?"

"You heard my terms already," he shot back, still moving towards her.

She shook her head and opened her mouth. He paused, fear flashing through his eyes for a moment and then she shouted, "Feim Zii Gron." She shivered as the feeling moved through her and then stepped backwards and fell easily down to the earth, landing gracefully and taking off in a sprint toward the stables. Shadowmere was already saddled and waiting for her, dancing around nervously. She paused before climbing onto the horse as her body came back to itself. She was speeding off just as she heard the shout of the guards behind her. She prayed that the gods would watch over the Companions and her children and keep them safe from Balgruuf's wrath.


	16. Chapter 16

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

Vilkas shifted slightly where he stood several feet behind Elise. She was seated at a table in the middle of the great hall in the Palace of the Kings looking as if she belonged completely. His mind flitted back over the events of the last week as they waited for Jarl Ulfric.

A mere two hours after she had left to meet with Jarl Balgruuf his guards had come pounding on the door to Jorrvaskr, demanding they turn over all her property and threatening to arrest any who stood in their way. Aela and Serana had convinced the guards that they were wasting their time and as soon as the guards had disappeared he and Aela packed up Elise's gear and headed off to Heljarchen. They found her there pacing the floor, a vicious look on her face. She had quickly changed into her armor and started issuing orders to those who were gathered in the building. There had not been much time for formal introductions, but Vilkas had realized that there was at least one representative from each faction there.

He had been welcomed into the fold and Elise had looked to him for guidance in working out their strategy moving forward. Aela had taken her leave shortly after, sighting that both of them missing from Jorrvaskr so soon after the incident at Dragonsreach would be suspicious. Elise had flat our refused to tell him what happened with Balgruuf, simply saying that it had not gone well. He had let the matter drop at the time, but was planning to get the information out of her later.

A door somewhere in the Palace slammed and pulled him out of his musings. Elise was still seated at the table, practically lounging there in her dragonscale armor as she waited. A few moments later the man himself walked out, followed closely by his second-in-command. Vilkas searched his memory and dredged up the name Galmar for him. The two were conversing and did not seem to notice that they had an audience. Vilkas waited uneasily, far enough away that he could not hear the specifics of their discussion. Elise helped herself to an apple on the table and set about slicing it up with her dagger, seemingly uninterested in what was going on around her, but Vilkas could tell by the tilt of her head that she was taking in every word. He edged his way closer in order to try and hear.

Finally the two of them stopped talking and Jarl Ulfric seemed to notice that they were not alone. "Why, it is the Dragonborn," he stated. "To what do I owe the pleasure?" His voice dripped with disdain and Vilkas moved closer. A glance from Elise had him shuffling back to his original position.

"Come now Ulfric," she responded, "A girl cannot drop in on her favorite Jarl?" She popped the final piece of apple in her mouth and turned towards him.

"It is no secret you are a favorite of Jarl Balgruuf's," Ulfric retorted. "Why are you in my palace?" he demanded.

"Why Jarl Ulfric, I am insulted," she cooed, her tone saturated with sweetness. "For I am here to offer to help you win this war."

His eyebrows climbed up nearly to his hairline. "I find that hard to believe," he stated, finally coming down from his throne to stand across from her.

"My assistance does not come without a price of course," she added. Galmar snarled and his hand moved up to curl around the hilt of his battleax and she looked sharply at him, pointing her dagger in his direction. "I warn you, one false move and you will end up dead. And it will not be my overprotective husband who ends you." Ulfric motioned to Galmar and he stepped back, eyes still locked on her. "As I was saying," she said, turning back to Ulfric and waving a hand for him to sit as if it were her palace and not his. "If you want my help, I must have something from you."

"Do I dare ask what it is?" Ulfric inquired, grudgingly dropping into the seat.

"I simply want you to show me that you can be a just ruler to all residents of Skyrim, not just the Nords." She leaned back in the chair and eyed him.

Ulfric snorted. "Skyrim is the home of the Nords. If the rest of them want to be treated justly then they should leave."

Elise shook her head sadly. "If you truly feel that way then I suppose I cannot assist you," she sighed.

"I do not need your assistance to defeat Tullius!" Ulfric declared, slamming his hand down on the table, startling Vilkas and Galmar. Elise smirked at the action and idly began twirling the dagger in her hand.

"That may be," she retorted, leaning towards him, "but how do you intend to defeat me?" The dagger stopped and she punctuated her question by slamming the point into the wooden table top.

Ulfric looked at her sharply. "What?"

Elise shrugged. "Oh, did I not mention that part?" she asked, seemingly innocent, "If you do not concede to my demand, then I shall raise an army of my own and defeat both you and Tullius."

"And just how do you intend to do that?" Galmar snarled. Elise raised her hand and in a matter of moments all the guards in the room were unconscious and Galmar and Ulfric found themselves surrounded.

"Allow me to introduce you to some of my friends," Elise smirked. "The assassins of the Dark Brotherhood."

"So you know some dirty cutthroats," Galmar snarled. "Big deal."

Elise turned to Ulfric. "I have the College of Winterhold, Thieves' Guild, Dark Brotherhood, Companions, and Dawnguard at my back; more loyalty from the rest of the Jarls than you could _ever_ hope to obtain; the support of all the Daedric princes; two dragons, one alive and one undead, at my beck and call; not to mention the Heroes of Sovngarde. You may be a hero to the people of Skyrim, but their memories of your heroism fade more and more with each passing day. Their memories of _me,_ the Dragonborn who saved them from Alduin, are fresh and new. Sons and daughters of Skyrim would abandon both armies to join mine without even thinking about it. So tell me Ulfric, who do _you_ think would win in a fight?" She held up a hand to stop him before he could respond. "Before you answer and say something you may regret in the future, you should read this." She pushed a book across the table towards him and Vilkas recognized her Dossier. "Once you have, and when you change your mind, you will find me in the place where we first met. You have two weeks and then I will move forward with my plans." With that she rose from the table and walked towards Vilkas. The assassins who had accompanied her melted into the shadows before Galmar or Ulfric could react. Vilkas watched as Ulfric picked up the small book and glanced in her direction, a thoughtful look in his eyes. As she neared him he turned his attention to her and the two of them walked out the doors together.

Elise inhaled deeply once they were outside the gates of Windhelm and on their way towards the stables. "Excellent work Cicero," she said and Vilkas was surprised when the odd little assassin appeared next to her.

"Cicero is happy to help the Listener. Cicero wanted so badly to kill the man and wear him like he wears the bear skin, but Cicero knew the Listener would not want that." Vilkas hid a shudder and tried to blot the mental picture of the jester assassin wearing Galmar around.

"I know Cicero, I want to gut him too," Elise conceded. "But we need him so we cannot."

"If that is what the Listener wants then Cicero will obey," he nodded and she smiled at him.

"Go on back to Heljarchen, Cicero. We will be there once we have heard from Ulfric," she ordered. He nodded and then disappeared into the night.

"By Talos that man gives me the creeps," Vilkas said.

Elise chuckled. "He is good at what he does, even if he is a bit eccentric."

"Do you think Ulfric will figure out that you will be at Ivarstead?" Vilkas asked. The two reached the stables and she led Shadowmere out of the stall while he found the roan she had loaned him.

"I do not know," she admitted. "I hope he agrees to this and figures it out. I do not want to lead an army to war."


	17. Chapter 17

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

Elise pushed herself up from the bed and rubbed a hand over her face. Vilkas shifted behind her and turned her direction. "Okay?" he murmured.

"I cannot sleep. I am going to go for a walk," she whispered back.

He pushed himself up slightly and opened an eye to look at her. "Want me to come with?"

She smiled and pushed him back down. "No," she said. "You get some rest." He lay back down and was soon lightly snoring as she laced up her boots and fastened a dagger around her waist. She tossed a wave at Wilhelm over her shoulder as she slipped out the door and into the night. She inhaled deeply, enjoying the cool, crisp air as it filled her lungs. Her feet turned down a familiar path and she barely paid attention to where she was going as her thoughts raced. It had been ten days since she had given Ulfric her ultimatum and he had yet to arrive. She was worried that he would travel to Helgen and she had considered going there herself, but her ego forced her to stay in Ivarstead, wanting him to recognize who she had been before.

She paused as she reached the tree on the edge of town that had a small headstone underneath it. She had been pleased when she returned from Valenwood to discover that the residents had seen to her father's burial in her absence. She squatted down at the foot of the grave and not for the first time her thoughts strayed to how she had left her father. He had been on the verge of death and she had said terrible things to him before walking out. The knowledge that he had protected her, that he had sacrificed it all to try and save her, ate at her constantly.

"Elisabelle," a gruff voice broke the silence, startling her. She twisted to see Ulfric standing at a distance behind her. She was surprised to see him wearing simple traveling clothes and if he had not used her former name she may not have recognized him.

She turned back to consider the grave as she answered, "I wondered if you would remember."

She heard him move closer and he paused a few feet behind her. "I am sorry about your father," he said.

She pushed herself up and turned to face him fully. "No more than I am, Ulfric," she responded. She looked him over and then glanced behind him. "Where is your nursemaid?" she asked, a smirk on her lips.

He grinned in response and said, "Galmar does not know I am here. He is currently on his way to Helgen to find me." She chuckled and shook her head slightly. "Where is your over protective husband?" he asked.

"Probably sitting in the inn wondering why I am not back yet and debating coming after me," she answered. The two stood in uncomfortable silence for several moments and she finally asked, "Why are you here?"

He shifted and she wished that it was brighter out so she could see his eyes. "I needed to know if it was true," he said finally.

"If what was true?" she pressed, "If I am really what the Dossier says I am? If I am serious about marching against you and Tullius? What?"

"No," Ulfric said, his voice rough, "If you really were the girl from Ivarstead so long ago."

Elise looked at the ground and shook her head. "I have not been that girl for some time." She turned and started towards the inn.

"Elisabelle," he called, stopping her. She turned partly back towards him. "Why did you not tell me? When you found out who I was in that wagon, why?" he asked. "After everything that happened before I left, before you left," he trailed off for a moment and ran one hand through his hair. "Why?"

"We are both different people Ulfric. That girl and boy who used to sit on the seven thousand steps and make plans for the future, they are both gone. Killed by the same enemy," she answered. "It is this reason that I give you an option to join me. I will drive the Thalmor from Skyrim, Ulfric, with or without you."

"Why me?" he asked. "Why not join with Balgruuf? You two seemed to be quite close at the peace council." His voice dripped with disdain and she tilted her head away to hide the pain on her face.

"I went to see Balgruuf first. I wanted to convince him to join with you. It did not end well." She shook her head and turned away. A dark figure was moving in their direction and she smiled at how predictable Vilkas could be at times.

"The over protective husband approaches," Ulfric murmured, moving to stand closer to her.

"He does," she agreed. "What is your answer Ulfric?"

"I will agree to your request and accept your assistance," Ulfric stated. "Report to the Palace of the Kings and we will get started."

"I will see you in a few days," she answered. She heard him move away as Vilkas reached her.

"Jarl Ulfric," he nodded towards the other man, wrapping a possessive arm around her waist.

"Companion," Ulfric responded and then turned to Elise. He reached into his pouch and produced her Dossier. She took it, careful to not let their fingers brush. "Elisabelle," he said and then turned away and Elise noticed the horse that was waiting in the distance. He did not look back until he was situated in the saddle and then he raised a hand in farewell. Elise returned the gesture and he was gone.

She leaned back against Vilkas, tucking her head under his chin. "You will be joining the Stormcloaks?" he asked.

"I will," she answered.

They stood together for several moments enjoying the silence and then he said, "Elisabelle?"

She smiled and turned around, burying her face in his neck. "A name of a girl who died with her father," she murmured.

"You and Ulfric were close?" he pressed.

She chuckled lightly and pulled away to look up at him. "I told you that back in the tomb before we were married. That past is dead Vilkas; it does not serve you well to dwell on it."

"You never said just how close you two were," he stated. She rolled her eyes and leaned up to kiss him.

"_Elisabelle_ was close to Ulfric. Like I said, that girl has died. There are no lingering feelings." Vilkas did not look convinced and Elise kissed him again. "Now, come along dear husband, very soon I will be off to war and will not see you for some time. We should make use of the room at the inn while we have it."

A leer crossed Vilkas' face and he hefted her up, throwing her over his shoulder and carrying her back to the inn, her laughter filling the still night air of Ivarstead.


	18. Chapter 18

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

Vilkas watched Aela and Farkas as they ushered people into Jorrvaskr while Serana and Jordis moved through the common room helping to calm everybody. He took a quick look around and noted that neither the Battle-Borns nor Gray-Manes were there. He assumed they were either part of the fight or hiding in their own houses.

He felt a tug on his leg and looked down, smiling at Sofie. "Papa," she said, "Will Mama be alright? She is out fighting, right?"

He squatted down and pulled the girl close to him. "Mama is out fighting and she will be just fine. She fought the biggest and meanest dragon in all of Skyrim and came back victorious. This fight will give her no problems." Sofie smiled tentatively and he tweaked her nose lightly, "Now I want you to stop worrying. Get your brother and friends and you all go downstairs and play. We will let you know when the fighting is over." She nodded and scampered off to find Alesan.

"How can you tell her not to worry when you are worried yourself?" Aela questioned, coming up behind him.

Vilkas glanced at her. "I do not worry if Elise will be okay or not. I worry that she may not be able to control herself around Balgruuf. I do not know what happened between them, but any time she speaks his name there is a hatred in her voice I have never heard at any other time."

Aela shrugged. "She gave him an opportunity to join her and I am sure she made her intentions clear to him. Balgruuf is aware of what she is capable of. I have no pity for that man."

They stood in silence and listened as the fighting grew closer until it sounded like it was right outside the doors to Jorrvaskr. Vilkas' hand tightened around the handle of his sword and he glanced around the room at the fearful innocents gathered in the middle and the Companions, all of whom stood ready to fight if needed to protect their home.

After several tense minutes his ears picked up the echoes of a Shout and he ran to the door with the intention of throwing it open. Farkas's hand on his wrist stopped him and he frowned at his twin. "We are not to open these doors until she tells us it is all clear." Vilkas clenched his hands into fists and took a step back from the door, sighing. "She will be fine," Farkas murmured quietly and then stepped away. The sounds of the fighting moved on and he suspected they were headed up to Dragonsreach.

It was several hours later when a faint knock echoed through the room. Most of the people huddled in the common room had fallen asleep and several of the Companions had gone down to bed, only the Inner Circle remaining to keep watch. Vilkas hurried to the door and after a nod from Aela he opened it to see Elise standing on the other side.

He reached out and she stepped into his arms, tucking her face into his neck. "The Stormcloaks have taken Whiterun," she said, just loud enough for him to hear. "Vignar Gray-Mane is the new Jarl."

"And Balgruuf?" He kept his arms wrapped tightly around her and steered her away from the door so that Aela could push it closed.

"Ousted. Most likely on his way to Solitude where he has allies from the Empire," she answered.

"But not dead?" he asked.

She pulled back to look at him and raised an eyebrow. "No, not dead. Why would he be?" she questioned.

"You spoke of him with such hatred these last few weeks. I thought perhaps," he trailed off and shrugged.

She frowned and looked down for a moment. "Let me go get cleaned up and change," she murmured. "Then I will tell you what happened with him."

He nodded. "Very well. We will see to it that these people go back to their houses."

An hour later found them both in his room. He sat on the bed and watched her while she paced, the emotions playing across her face in turn scaring and amusing him. She wore nothing but one of his tunics, the large item draping passed her knees and falling off one shoulder. Her feet were bare and he wondered how she could stand it on the cold floors. After several more moments he reached out as she passed and grabbed her arm, tugging her down to his lap. "What is it?" he asked quietly.

She sighed and seemed to deflate, falling against him. He wrapped his arms around her and leaned his chin on her head as she began talking. "When I went to meet with Balgruuf, I expected resistance. I expected to have to promise him something to get his assistance." Vilkas nodded in understanding and she continued. "I should have known when I got there that something was going on. I have always felt comfortable with Balgruuf from the first time we met when I came to tell him about the dragon at Helgen. That night I met with him though, it was almost like another person," she murmured. "Dinner was stilted and formal. It seemed to get better when I told him of my plans and then," she stopped and swallowed hard. Vilkas did not speak, instead reaching up to rub his hand down her back. She sighed and continued, "He told me that I should have the Dark Brotherhood murder you and then marry him and we could rule Skyrim together."

Vilkas stiffened in shock, his hand freezing on her back. "He what?" he snarled.

"Now you see why I was so vengeful?" she explained, sitting up to look at him. She reached out and ran her hand along his cheek. "For him to think that I would so easily throw you aside."

Vilkas stared into her eyes, his hand coming up to grab the one she had against his face. "Would you?" he asked.

She gasped and frowned at him. "Never!" she exclaimed. "Vilkas, I would never throw you aside. If something where to happen to you, I do not think I could live with myself."

"Good," he growled and then leaned forward, pressing his lips to hers in a heated kiss. She moaned and turned, straddling his lap as his hands slid up her thighs, rucking up the tunic as they moved.

Later they lay under the blankets of the bed and she rolled over and propped her chin on his chest, looking at him. He opened one eye and caught the questioning look on her face. "What?" he asked.

"That was about more than just Balgruuf," she commented.

"I do not know what you are speaking of," he murmured, pointedly closing his eyes.

She rolled her own eyes and poked him in the side. "I know better Vilkas," she said. He opened his eyes and sat up abruptly, forcing her to scramble up herself. "Vilkas?" she pressed.

"You have been gone for a month and I have missed you. Can I not show you that?" he retorted, turning to sit at the edge of the bed.

"Vilkas," she stated and he swore he felt her eyes narrow as she glared at his back.

He glanced over his shoulder at her and then turned away, snorting. She was quiet for a few moments and then he felt her move and she pressed her front against his back and brought her arms around him, hands coming up to slide through the hair on his chest. He shuddered and felt her smirk against his neck before she began pressing kisses there.

She had nearly reached his ear when he all but roared and grabbed her hands, spinning and pinning her down to the bed. "Is that how you get what you want?" he growled into her face. "With looks and sounds and playing to the men who surround you?"

"What?" she snarled.

"You heard me. You said yourself you went to meet with Balgruuf with the intention of promising him something for his assistance. Was it your body you were going to promise? And you have spent the last month with Ulfric and Galmar and it is no secret that there used to be something between you and Ulfric. How do I know you are not falling back into those feelings?" He knew the words spilling out of his mouth could not be farther from the truth, but he could not stop them.

The results were instant, her face went icy and the look she shot him chilled him to the core. "Do you really believe that?" she asked. Her voice was frosty but he could tell underneath it that she was greatly hurt.

He released her arms and sat up, turning away. "No," he said, rubbing a hand over her face. "I do not believe that."

"Vilkas, what is wrong with you?" she asked, exasperated.

He sighed and looked down at his hands. "You have spent a great deal of the last month in the company of other men." He held up a hand to stop her protest before it came. "I fear the day when you realize that one of them is better for you," he finished.

"Oh Vilkas," she sighed, moving to sit next to him and wrapping both her arms around one of his. She leaned her head on his shoulder and looked up at him. "None of them are better for me. Do you really think any of those men could handle me?" He chuckled and looked down at her and she smiled sweetly up at him. "You have seen me through my worst and my best. There will never be another for me," she vowed.

"Nor me," he responded.

"Good," she laughed. "Now can we please get back to the part where we are thoroughly enjoying this bed? I have to go back to Windhelm tomorrow to prepare for the next battle and I want to get as much of my husband as possible." She crawled behind him and lay down on the bed, raising an eyebrow and opening her arms in invitation.

"You do not have to tell me twice," he answered before joining her.


	19. Chapter 19

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

_Thanks again to everybody who has read/reviewed/followed/favorited this story. It makes me all warm and tingly inside! _

Elise dropped down onto a crate next to a fire and sighed. Ralof grinned up at her "Be at ease," he stated, "For we march on Solitude in the morning and then this war will be well and truly over and Ulfric Stormcloak will be the rightful king of Skyrim!" He raised his hand in the air in salute.

"Only if I do not kill him first," she muttered.

Ralof laughed. "Come, surely it is not that bad?"

"No," she stated. "It is worse. At least Galmar was willing to listen to my ideas and input. Jarl Ulfric will have none of it."

Ralof shrugged. "Let the man plan his battle," he said. "You have already got him over a barrel by threatening to bring an army against him if he did not change his ways. Let him at least demonstrate to the troops that he is truly worthy of being the High King and that they should not be rising up behind a new High Queen." He gave her a significant look.

She frowned at him. "How do you know about that?" she hissed.

"Galmar's lips become loose when he has had too much mead. Fortunately for him I was the only one around. We can all see the difference though. There are Bretons and Redguards in the Stormcloak army now where there were none before. Argonians and Dunmer walk through Windhelm with no more fear. Even if they do not know you threatened him, they believe it is from your influence that the Jarl has made these decisions. Unless you want to lead a country you should let him lead this army to battle."

She sighed again. "Fine," she groused. "It is only one battle. And I have noticed the changes. I just hope they last."

"And if they do not?" Ralof asked.

"Then I will sneak into the palace and gut the High King in his sleep," she retorted.

A booming laugh startled her and she turned to see Ulfric standing behind her. "I do not know if I should be pleased that you are already referring to me as king, or worried that you intend to murder me in my sleep," he stated, a grin playing on his lips.

"Only if you do not live up to your end of the bargain Jarl Ulfric," she stated.

"So little faith in me," he said. "And here I was coming to tell you there is a surprise for you in the house." He motioned to Katla's house where they had set up their headquarters to finalize the plans for the battle that was to happen the next morning. She glanced at the house and then up at him and he smirked and then turned towards another fire where she saw Galmar seated. She looked at Ralof who shrugged in response.

She puffed out a short sigh and rose, walking over towards the house. Upon opening the door and slipping inside, she was surprised to see a table set with a meal for two. She frowned and stormed over to it and then reached down to grab one of the knives off the table. She heard the door open behind her and spun, flinging the knife out. It stuck into the door frame next to the figure that had just come in and she growled. "I do not know who you think you are Ulfric Stormcloak, but I am married and you _know_ that."

"It is a good thing I am not Ulfric Stormcloak then," the figure stated and then stepped into the light. Elise gasped and Vilkas grinned.

"What are you doing here?" she asked.

"It was the oddest thing," he commented, walking over to slide his arms around her. "I received a message from a courier informing me that the battle for Solitude would be tomorrow and perhaps I would like to spend the evening with my wife."

"Really?" she asked. "How did you get here so quickly?"

"Shadowmere seems to be missing you just as much as I was. I told him we were going to see you and he moved faster than any horse I have ever seen," Vilkas answered.

"Shadowmere is here?" She pulled away as if to go outside and see the horse.

"Yes." He tightened his grip on her and pulled her flush against him. "And he will still be there in a little while. For now though, you are here with me."

"And I am so very glad for it to," she responded, grinning just before his lips claimed hers. They separated minutes later and she glanced back at the table and then over at him. "Who arranged all this?" she asked.

Vilkas shrugged. "I honestly do not know. I suspect that Jarl Ulfric is attempting to stay in your good graces. Rumor is that he needs a new Thane and who better than the Dragonborn and savior of Skyrim several times over?"

Elise hummed noncommittally and snuggled into his embrace. "I am already Thane in all the other holds, what is one more?"

Vilkas hugged her tight against him. "I should tell you about the visitor we had at Jorrvaskr."

"Visitor?" she murmured sleepily.

"This tiny little Imperial woman arrived looking for you. Said if you did not come help her she would, ah, 'Slit the jester's throat' and that she 'did not care what the consequences were.' Does that make sense to you?" He ran his hand up her back and she chuckled into his neck.

"Kirsikka has been trying to get Cicero to notice her for quite some time now. Seems she is getting frustrated with the little man," Elise responded.

"You mean there is a woman out there who is actually _interested_ in that crazy assassin?" Vilkas asked, shocked.

Elise laughed loudly. "Nobody said that Kirsikka was completely sane. It must be something about Imperial assassins." She yawned and stretched.

"Would you rather go to sleep?" Vilkas asked as Elise slipped out of his hold and wandered over to the table.

"Yes, for a week or two, unfortunately I have this battle in the morning that Ulfric is just insisting I be at," she responded, "Besides, why let this fabulous dinner go to waste? And I really want to see Shadowmere."

Vilkas snorted. "I see where your priorities lie," he grumbled as he sat across from her.

It was an hour later when Elise woke to Vilkas shaking her. "You were nearly asleep on your plate," he said. "Come, time for bed."

"No," she protested, pushing herself away from him and up. "I want to see Shadowmere." She pouted at him and he rolled his eyes.

"For a few minutes," he agreed. The two went outside, ignoring the loud singing and noise from the soldiers nearby. "Seems they are already celebrating their victory," he commented.

Elise chuckled. "Yes, they are rather sure of our victory. Considering how well we have done so far I would say that we have a good chance." She walked up to the stable and Shadowmere's head appeared. He whinnied quietly and she walked up to him, laying her head against his. "My dear Shadowmere," she cooed, scratching him behind the ears before reaching into her pouch for a sugar cube. He sniffed her hand and then delicately took the cube from her hand. "Thank you for bringing Vilkas here so quickly." Shadowmere snorted and proceeded to sniff her pouches in search of more sugar. She laughed and produced an apple for him. He took it and she wavered on her feet.

Vilkas reached out and steadied her. "Enough you two, bed for you." Shadowmere snorted again and then nuzzled Elise. She patted him one more time and then allowed Vilkas to lead her into the house. Vilkas helped her out of her armor and then into the bed.

"Will you stay until morning?" Elise sighed as she snuggled under the furs.

"Always," Vilkas responded as he slipped in next to her and pulled her up close to him.

"Good." A yawn split her face as she cuddled against his side and slipped into sleep.


	20. Chapter 20

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

_Not sure how I feel about this chapter... Hope you enjoy!_

Vilkas looked up at Alesan's yell. The boy disappeared around to the front of Jorrvaskr and returned moments later with Elise in tow. Vilkas smiled and rose from where he had been seated; watching as Elise listened intently to whatever Alesan was telling her about.

"And then I stabbed it and Braith was so scared, but I was not scared at all, Ma!" Alesan finished.

"Battling skeevers, hmm?" she commented, glancing at Vilkas. He shrugged and she looked back down at the boy. "And were there any adults with you?"

Alesan looked embarrassed and then shrugged. "We were in Braith's house Ma. It should have been totally safe." She hummed in her throat but did not respond, instead turning to kiss Vilkas.

The door opened and Sofie came barreling out, followed closely by the rest of the Circle and Jordis. "So does Skyrim have a new High King?" Farkas asked, taking a seat at one of the tables.

Elise scooped up Sofie and sat down across from him, hugging the girl to her as she answered. "Not officially, though I am sure it will be confirmed once the Moot meets in a fortnight."

"And no word of a High Queen?" Serana questioned.

Elise laughed. "No High Queen as of now. Ulfric will find one eventually I am sure." She smirked, "I did suggest that he perhaps entertain wedding Elisif. His reaction was rather amusing."

Vilkas sat back and studied Elise as the group talked, paying little attention to the topics they were discussing. Mostly she appeared at ease, but something in her was tense, pulled taut behind her eyes. He made a mental note to ask her about it later.

"Mama, can we go out and practice with the bow later?" Sofie asked, interrupting the adults.

Elise smiled down at the girl. "Of course Sofie. I need to talk to Papa first though okay?" The young girl nodded and jumped down, running off towards the Plains District with Alesan in tow.

"What happened?" Vilkas asked. The others looked surprised and all eyes turned to Elise.

She smirked, though it did not reach her eyes. "Fancy a trip to Solstheim?" she asked as she pulled a note out of her pouch and handed it to him.

His eyes scanned over it quickly and he looked up at her. "Miraak?"

"I have no idea," she answered. "I pulled the note of a couple of psychotic cultists who attacked me in Dawnstar. They accused me of being the false Dragonborn and that the First Dragonborn, this Miraak, would be returning soon. It just figures, the gods cannot leave me be."

Vilkas frowned and studied the note again. "I would argue that it is not your battle, but according to this note it clearly is." He looked back up at her. "You wish for me to go with you?"

She nodded. "If there really is a cult out to kill me, I want some help taking care of them. Who else would I take?"

"You just returned," Farkas commented. "Must you leave so soon?"

Elise glanced at him and smiled. "No, I will be here a fortnight at least before we leave. I want to guarantee that Ulfric becomes the High King. You should all be wary though, I cannot say that these cultists will not attack again."

"Have you done any research on this Miraak character?" Aela asked.

Elise nodded. "I have a note out to the College in Winterhold, but have heard nothing back yet and I do not believe I will. If this person really is the First Dragonborn, it would have been millennia since he or she walked the land."

"Perhaps Cyrodiil? The Imperial City?" Serana suggested.

"A response would take too long. You do not recognize the name do you?" Elise returned.

Serana tapped her chin as she thought. "No, which means that Miraak must be quite old indeed. I am pretty sure I would remember a Dragonborn."

"I have a suspicion there is more at play than just another Dragonborn," Elise stated. "This reeks of Daedric involvement."

Serana leaned forward, obviously intrigued. "Which one?"

Jordis shifted uncomfortably. "As exciting as this discussion is, Farkas and I have some matters to attend to." The two rose abruptly and headed back into Jorrvaskr.

Elise smirked. "Anybody else wish to leave before Serana and I get into Daedric Prince discussions?"

Aela leaned forward on the table and rested her head in her hands. "I follow Hircine, the talk of the other Princes does not bother me." Vilkas said nothing, simply watched the two expectantly.

Elise looked back at Serana. "I know who it is not. As for who it is, it could be Sheogorath. Stirring up this chaos is right up his alley."

Serana looked up while she thought. "Possibly, seems a bit too deadly for him. He likes madness yes, but this is too straight forward for him. Mehrunes Dagon?" she offered.

Elise shook her head. "No, as long as I am putting the Razor to use, he has no reason to bother me." The two lapsed into silence as they thought. "Mephala?" Elise murmured and then dismissed it instantly, "No, this is not her type of web."

"Molag Bal?" Serana said, though her tone of voice betrayed her. She sighed and looked up towards the sky. "Vaermina," she said, definitively.

"No," Elise said. "She works through sleep, not in reality." She sighed and rubbed her eyes. "Hermaeus Mora," she stated.

Serana frowned. "What would he have to do with this?" she asked.

Elise shrugged. "I do not know; I just have this feeling."

Serana was shaking her head. "You better hope you are wrong," she said. "He is not one to be trifled with."

Elise laughed. "None of them are."

Serana smirked. "That is a good point. Whoever it is you need to be careful. You said you were going to Solstheim?" At Elise's nod she continued, "Make sure you pack something to cover your face. The ash is terrible this time of year."

Vilkas smirked. "The ash is terrible at any time of year," he commented. "We will want to inspect our armor as well. All it takes is one little crevice and the next thing you know you are walking around with ash in places where it does not belong."

Aela laughed. "I remember when that happened," she said, "You and Farkas were cleaning ash out of yourselves and your clothes for weeks!"

"Exactly," Vilkas groused. He rose and extended his hand to Elise. "Come, Wife," he said, "Let us go start planning for this trip."


	21. Chapter 21

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

_Thanks for all the reviews. I'm pretty sure this is the second to last chapter. I hope you enjoy!_

"I do not like it" Vilkas grumbled as the two of them slipped into the back of the Thirsk Mead Hall and dropped their packs next to one of the beds. Elise rolled her eyes before turning to look at him.

"I am not overly fond of it either, but I do not have a choice," she retorted.

"There must be another way. Making a deal with Hermaeus Mora? You have enough debts to the Daedric Princes already," he stated.

She bit back a sigh and pressed two fingers against her temple, wishing not for the first time that she had brought Serana with her. Serana would have understood. She sat heavily on the bed and looked up at him resignedly. "I have already had dealings with Hermaeus Mora," she admitted. "I have had dealings with all of the Daedric Princes."

Vilkas dropped down next to her, jostling the bed some as he did. "All the Daedric Princes?" he asked, clearly shocked.

She nodded. "All sixteen. I have managed to return the artifacts gifted to me by all but a few. One being the knowledge granted to me by Hermaeus Mora."

"And so you agree that going to talk to this Master Neloth about the Black Books will assist you?" he questioned.

"You heard Storn," she answered, pulling off her boots and then turning to lie on the bed. She threw one arm over her face and sighed. "He made it rather clear what needed to be done."

Vilkas frowned but followed her lead, shifting to lie with his side pressed against hers. "I still do not like it," he groused. She laughed and leaned up to kiss him on the cheek.

"There are several things that I have not liked and still had to do. It is an unfortunate part of being me," she responded. He snorted but didn't say anything further and she lie back down and allowed herself to drift into a light sleep.

The next morning found them standing outside the mushroom tower named Tel Mithryn where the Master Telvanni wizard Neloth resided. Elise considered it and then glanced over at Vilkas. "You should wait out here," she stated.

"And why is that?" he asked.

"You are a Nord and a Companion," she stated as if that answered everything, and in her mind it did.

"So?" he asked.

"So Nords are not very open to outsiders, no matter the history of Solstheim, and as for the Companions. Well, we all know the history of Wuuthrad," she stated. He opened his mouth to argue and then snapped it shut, seeming to realize he was not going to win.

"Very well," he said. "I shall wait here."

She kissed him quickly on the lips and then headed inside the tower. A short and intense ride later found her standing in what was obviously a laboratory. She approached the Dunmer wizard who seemed very involved in a book and opened her mouth to speak, only to shut it when he held up a finger.

"A moment, I despise interruptions," he snapped. She raised an eyebrow but waited until he finished and marked his place. He turned and looked her over, nose wrinkling in distaste. "A Bosmer?"

"Last time I checked," she responded.

He frowned at her sass and then waved his hand in a dismissive gesture. "Make it quick, I have things to do."

"I hear you know where to find Black Books," she said.

If he was surprised he did not show it, instead answering with a bored tone, "You refer to the tomes of esoteric knowledge that old Hermaeus Mora has scattered throughout the world? What could you know of them?"

Elise refrained from snorting and instead responded, "I have dealt with Hermaeus Mora before. I have read the _Oghma Infinium_."

His eyebrows raised in shock. "Have you? The actual _Oghma Infinium_? That is… I have searched for it myself for many years without success… Well then, you should know better than anyone that Hermaeus Mora is not to be trifled with. But he is subtler than most of the other Daedric Princes, as you would expect the prince of knowledge and fate. You seem to have excaped the fate of many who find themselves ensnared forever by the lure of his secrets. Or… perhaps not." He looked her over again and sneered.

Elise rolled her eyes and growled out. "I have to know what Miraak knows if I want to stop him."

"Miraak?" he asked, tapping his chin in thought, "The one all the townsfolk are always chanting about?"

"Yes." She forced out between her teeth. "You may have noticed he is trying to return to Solstheim."

Neloth shrugged and turned his attention back to the book in his hand. When he answered his voice was filled with disdain. "Well, I knew something connected with Hermaeus Mora was spreading its influence across the island. I was not sure that it was in fact the same entity as this legendary namesake of the central temple. Although the villagers seem quite convinced."

Elise folded her hands behind her back in order to keep from yanking the book from his hands. Master Telvanni Wizard or not he did not have to be so rude. "Do you know where I can find another Black Book?" she asked.

"Oh yes," he stated flippantly. "They are not hard to locate once you know how to look for them. I have one here that I have been using to locate more."

"You have a Black Book?" she asked in surprise.

"Yes. I have not been idle while this fascinating madness engulfed Solstheim. But my book is not what you are looking for. I am quite sure it is unconnected with this Miraak. But I do know where to find a Black Book that can help you," he answered.

"Why will the Book you have here not help me?" she pressed. If it meant that she did not have to wander more of this island she would jump on the chance.

"Oh, it clearly is not associated with the same power that has overtaken the island," he responded, voice toned as if talking to a small child. "And I am not talking about Hermaeus Mora. These Black Books are all his, of course. No, what you are looking for is a specific book. Presumably because Miraak's power derives from it."

"Great, so you will tell me where to go?" She sighed in frustration when he shook his head.

"It is not that simple, or I would already have the book. No, we will go together. Provided you can convince me why I should help you." He idly flipped back open the book he had and placed it on the desk before jotting down some notes in the margins.

Elise smirked behind his back and reached into her pack. This part she had been prepared for. Neloth jumped in surprise when she dropped the large tome down on the desk.

"What is that?" he snarled, eyeing the old and dusty book with distaste.

"Oh that?" she answered airily, "That is the _Oghma Infinium_. You know, the book you have searched years for."

"What? How did you? I cannot believe you have this." His hands ran along the cover and spine reverently. She snatched it back quickly and held it against her chest.

"A trade," she stated, "One book for another."

Neloth smirked and stood up. "For a glimpse at the _Oghma Infinium_ I would do much more than take you to find a Black Book. If that is all you are asking for though, well I am not noble enough to turn you down."

"Good," Elise responded. "I get enough nobleness from my husband. And I need that Black Book."

"Very well," Neloth said. "Let me get my things together and we will be off to Nchardak."

"I will meet you outside," Elise commented. Neloth did not respond, instead seemed to be busy trying to determine what staff to take with him. Elise shook her head and floated back down to the entrance, moving outside to find Vilkas waiting near the door.

"Well?" he asked.

"It seems we are about to be joined by a Master Telvanni Wizard in our quest," she told him.

"Grand," he muttered under his breath.


	22. Chapter 22

_Disclaimer in Ch. 1_

_This is the last chapter! I'm greatly appreciate everybody's support and comments through this whole story. While it's the end of this tale, I have a few in mind that involve some other Skyrim characters, some OC's and more of Elise's past and future._

Vilkas wrapped his arm tighter around Elise as the two made their way towards the gates of Whiterun. It was late and in the dark even walking up the familiar path was difficult, especially while trying to help Elise. Her foot caught on something and she stumbled and finally Vilkas stopped. "That is it," he muttered and slipped one arm around her shoulders and one under her knees, hauling her up.

"I can make it," she gasped out.

"No, you cannot," he answered. She sighed and leaned against him, apparently accepting that he was right. As they neared the gate he called out to the guards and they opened it for him. He nodded his thanks as he moved passed them.

He carefully maneuvered through the empty market place and up the steps to Jorrvaskr. Elise's breathing became faster and shallower as he jostled her and he murmured an apology. "Not your fault," she said, leaning her head against his shoulder. "Could have waited to come back until after I was healed."

"No," he said. "Two months is long enough without seeing our family. You finished your task; it was time to come home."

"Home," she sighed, her breath moving the hair on his neck. "Sounds wonderful."

"Good because we are here." He shifted her in his arms to open the door and walked in, dropping their packs on the floor and kicking the door shut.

"You are back!" Serana rose from where she and Aela were sitting near the fire and hurried over. "What happened?" she asked when she got closer and got a good look at Elise.

"Final battle against an epic evil," Elise answered. "The usual. I will be fine, just need some rest."

"The children will be happy to see you," Aela commented.

"In the morning," Elise answered, voice dropping off as she slipped into unconsciousness.

"I am taking her down to bed. Serana, if you could come assist me in getting her situated? Aela, fetch Danica please," Vilkas ordered. The Huntress nodded and disappeared out the door while he and Serana hurried downstairs.

By the time Aela returned with Danica they had her armor off and she was lying in bed, her breathing shallow and rough. Serana had roused Farkas to join them.

Danica passed hands over her, murmuring to herself. She eventually cast a series of healing spells and then turned to face the group giving Vilkas an odd look. "She will be fine. She had few physical wounds and she is mentally exhausted. I would not be surprised if she slept for more than a day or two. I recommend somebody sitting with her until she awakens. She is lucky that she is so early in her pregnancy or it could have been worse."

Vilkas froze, eyes wide. "Pregnancy?" he choked out.

Danica blinked at him. "Yes, I thought you knew." She frowned and shrugged, "Well you know now. She is not far along, perhaps a month. Please let me know if her condition changes."

Vilkas sat hard in the chair, obviously in shock. Aela cleared her throat. "You really did not know?" she asked.

"No, I did not know. I do not even know if she knows. I never would have let her fight." He sighed and rubbed his eyes. "Pregnant. I am going to be a father."

"You already are a father," Farkas commented.

Vilkas shot him a look and he quieted. He turned and looked at Elise, worry painted across his face. "Vilkas, you should get some rest. She will not wake right now. Go, see the children, change and clean up. One of us will sit with her," Serana ordered.

He opened his mouth to protest but Farkas stepped forward. "You will do no good for her if you are dead or ill yourself. Go." Farkas pointed to the door and Vilkas reluctantly walked out of it.

He headed into Farkas' room and quickly shed his armor and cleaned himself up before borrowing some of his brother's clothes. He then went into the bedroom where the children were sleeping and perched on the bed next to Alesan. His movement woke the boy who sat up and rubbed his eyes. "Pa?" he asked, voice thick with sleep. "You are back! Where is Ma?" Alesan twisted around looking for her.

"Sleeping," Vilkas answered. "She had a big battle and is very tired. Danica said she will be fine but she must sleep."

Alesan frowned and then looked back up at him. "If Danica said she will be fine then it must be so. Can I see her tomorrow?" he asked.

"Perhaps," Vilkas responded. He paused and then asked, "How would you feel about another brother or sister?"

"I would rather have a brother," Alesan said, "One sister is enough."

Vilkas chuckled and ruffled the boy's hair. "I do not think you will get to choose. Now go back to sleep before you wake your sister."

"Yes Pa." The boy huddled back down in the bed and Vilkas slipped from the room. He was right outside the door when he heard Sofie's quiet voice.

"Al, was that Papa?" she asked.

"Sure was Soph," Alesan replied. "He and Ma are back."

Sofie made a cute little hum and whispered, "That is good. I missed them." Vilkas smiled and headed back to his and Elise's room in a much better mood.

Everybody had cleared out save Serana who was sitting in the chair reading a familiar book. "Where did you get that?" Vilkas asked, carefully climbing into the bed next to Elise.

"She left it here with a note that Farkas, Aela, and I should read it. I am the last one," Serana stated, casually flipping a page. "It certainly explains why she has done a lot of the things she has done."

Vilkas hummed in agreement and adjusted himself so that Elise was cuddled next to him. He carefully slid his hand over her abdomen and closed his eyes. He thought it would be difficult to fall asleep with Serana in the room and his mind racing so quickly, but he found that he was so exhausted from the trip that as soon as he closed his eyes slumber claimed him.

Elise inhaled deeply as she slowly regained consciousness. The last thing she remembered was being at the Summit of Apocrypha and facing off with Miraak. She peeked open her eyes and after a moment recognized her and Vilkas' room inside Jorrvaskr. She searched her memory and dredged up an unfocused recollection of Vilkas carrying her through Whiterun. She had thought it was a dream but apparently it was not.

She opened her eyes and turned her head to see Farkas sitting in the chair next to the bed idly sharpening a dagger. "Welcome back," he commented when he saw her looking at him.

"Thank you," she rasped out. He silently held out a mug of cider and she carefully pushed herself up and reached out to take it, swallowing it down thankfully. "How long?" she asked.

"Three days since Vilkas brought you back in the middle of the night," Farkas responded. "He is out with the children right now. In fact they should be down here for their daily visit soon." She nodded and took another drink.

"You are staring," she commented into the tankard. Farkas shrugged and kept looking at her oddly. "What?" she asked finally.

"It is really not my place to tell you. I am sure Vilkas will when he returns."

As if on cue the door opened and Alesan and Sofie came barreling in, Vilkas trailing behind them. "Mama!" Sofie cried when she saw Elise sitting in bed. The young girl ran to the bed and jumped onto it, throwing herself into Elise's arms. Alesan was not far behind and Elise found herself hugging them as she blinked through tears.

"I missed you two so much," she whispered to them, pulling them tight.

"We missed you too, Mama," Sofie said, cuddling up into Elise's side. "Do not ever leave again!"

"She will not," Vilkas answered, cutting off Elise before she could speak. "Not for that long at least."

"Good," Alesan muttered.

"Vilkas," Elise hissed. He gave her a look that they would discuss it when the children were not present.

"Come along you two," Farkas said, standing up and stretching. "I know you have not seen your mother much, but she is still very weak. Let us go and fetch Danica to check her over."

The three of them walked out of the room and Elise shot an amused look at Vilkas when she heard Sofie call him Unca Farkas. The look dropped from her face when she remembered what he had said to Sofie. "You cannot promise them that," she scolded.

"I can and will," he responded before sitting down on the bed and turning to face her. "I reread your Dossier. By my count you have done at least two more world saving quests than any of your ancestors. I am drawing the line."

She raised an eyebrow at him. "You are challenging the Divines and Daedric Princes?"

"No," he said. "I am letting you know that you do not have to do anything else on your own. You have a family now, and I do not mean only the children and me. You probably could have taken half of Skyrim with you to Solstheim to face Miraak and they would have willingly gone."

"I would not ask that of anybody. It is not their burden," she muttered.

"And that is why they wish to help you carry it, because you do not ask or force their help. Listen to me," He slid his hand under her chin and pulled her face up to meet her eyes. "I love you. Sofie and Alesan love you. The Companions respect and cherish you, as do the rest of your organizations or they would not have been willing to march against Ulfric Stormcloak and General Tullius for you. You are not alone in this anymore. You have done enough for Skyrim and Tamriel. You have earned your rest and I intend to give it to you. Besides, you have more than just yourself to think about now." He placed his hand meaningfully on her stomach.

Her eyes widened and she shakily reached down to touch his hand. "I had suspected," she whispered, "but with everything in Solstheim, I was not sure if it was because of that or something else. I had not been to see a healer so I was not sure."

"Danica confirmed it when she checked you over after we got back. It is time for you to have the life you wanted before Helgen," he stated.

"I do not know if I can be that person anymore," she answered, tears filling her eyes. "I have been fighting for so long, I do not know if I can go back."

He cupped her face with both hands, thumbs sliding across her cheeks to wipe away the tears. "There will still be fighting," he stated with a smirk. "You are the Harbinger of the Companions after all and I am sure that at some point your other affiliates will need your help with something. I simply mean you should no longer be forced to leaving on months-long trips to try and single handedly save the world."

"It was never single-handed," she argued, "I always had at least one other person with me."

Vilkas snorted. "Because I was so much help against Miraak," he replied sarcastically. "I just spent the whole time trying to not get in the way." She laughed and he grinned. "That is what I want to see more of. That laughter."

She turned her eyes down from his for a moment before looking back up at him. "You are right," she said. "I am ready to enjoy my life and my family."

"Good," Vilkas stated and then leaned forward to press a kiss to her lips. They could hear the kids clambering down the hall, chattering excitedly to Danica and Farkas what they would be doing as soon as Elise was cleared to leave the bed. "Ready for your next big adventure?" Vilkas asked.

Elise smiled and reached out to grab his hand, squeezing it. "I cannot wait."


End file.
